Big Sky Conference Standings

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Senior Lauren Kissell had a match-high 12 kills and Sacramento State hit .356 on the way to a three-set sweep (25-19, 25-18, 25-19) of Portland State on Saturday evening at the Stott Center.

The victory was the second in two weeks over Portland State as the Hornets improved to 22-5 overall and 9-3 in the Big Sky. Sacramento State swept the Vikings at home on Oct. 17. Portland State dropped to 7-17 and 3-9 in league play with the loss.

The 22-5 record matches the best for the program in 20 years, as the 1995 squad had a 24-3 record. Both the 2006 and 2007 teams also had 22-5 records after 27 matches. In addition, the Hornets won their sixth match in a row, and of those six wins, four came via three-set sweeps.

Perhaps more impressive is the win came without two starters in rightside hitter Shannon Boyle (back) and middle blocker Courtney Dietrich (knee). Boyle has missed all 12 conference matches with the injury while Dietrich went down in the first set of Thursday's win at North Dakota.

Northern Arizona (11-1) and Idaho State (10-2) also won tonight, and both teams remain ahead of Sacramento State (9-3) in the South Division of the Big Sky. Eastern Washington leads the North Division with a 9-3 record. Only four matches remain on the regular season schedule for the Hornets, including the final two home contests next week against Weber State and Idaho State.

In a match that lasted just an hour and 17 minutes, Portland State's largest lead of the evening was 3-0 early in the second set. Sacramento State was never really challenged as the Hornets had 44 kills with just eight errors in 101 total swings. The Hornets have hit at least .320 in five of the team's wins during the six-match winning streak.

Sacramento State limited Portland State to just a .159 hitting percentage. The Vikings had 41 kills and took 12 more swings (113) than the Hornets, but committed 23 errors. In addition, the Hornets had a sizeable advantage in team blocks (13.0-4.0).

Today marked the first time since the 2008 season that Sacramento State swept the season series from Portland State.

Kissell's 12 kills accompanied zero errors in 28 swings, good for a .429 hitting percentage. Madeline Cannon had seven kills, a match-high tying five blocks and a .538 hitting percentage (7-0-13), and Morgan Stanley finished with 11 kills and five blocks.

Sloan Lovett had eight kills and a .300 hitting percentage, and setter Kennedy Kurtz had 32 assists, an ace, three blocks and a match-high 12 digs. True freshman Brie Gathright, who started her first match of the season for the injured Dietrich, had three kills, a .500 hitting percentage and a season-high tying five blocks. Libero Lexie Skalbeck had nine digs and Lana Brown had two kills in two swings.

For Portland State, Jenna Mullen had 10 kills and a .381 hitting percentage while Kylie Copel had five kills, 31 assists, 11 digs and a .500 hitting percentage.

The Hornets play their final two home matches of the regular season next week against Weber State on Thursday at 7 p.m., and Idaho State on Saturday at 7 p.m. Prior to Saturday's match, Hornet seniors Lauren Aikels, Lovett and Kissell will be honored for their contributions to the program.