The Week Ahead

• With just three weeks remaining before the Big Sky Tournament, Sacramento State (11-12, 7-4) will embark upon its final regular season road trip as the Hornets will travel to the Montana schools.
• The Hornets face Montana State (9-14, 5-6) on Thursday at 6 p.m. PT, and Montana (14-9, 7-4) on Saturday at 11 a.m. PT. Sacramento State beat both teams earlier this season at home, including a four-set win over the Grizzlies, and three-set sweep of the Bobcats.
• Last week, the Hornets split a pair of home matches, which included Thursday's loss to Northern Colorado while snapped a 10-match home winning streak vs. Big Sky teams dating back to last season.
• The Hornets are 6-4 on the road this year, including a 3-3 mark vs. conference opposition. Of the Hornets' six matches vs. Big Sky teams, five have been decided in either four or five sets.
• Only five games remain in the regular season, and Sacramento State currently finds itself in a tie for fourth place with Montana. Just two games separate the top five teams in the conference as Portland State is 9-2, followed by Northern Colorado (8-3), Weber State (7-3), and both the Hornets and Griz.
• The top eight teams qualify for the Big Sky Tournament in Ogden (Nov. 23-26), and the Hornets need just one more win to clinch a spot in the postseason event. If the season ended today, the Hornets would face Montana in the first round on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.
• Sacramento State has finished 10-6 in league each of the last two seasons, and is just one win shy of clinching a conference record of .500 or above for the eighth straight year.
• After this week's matches, Sacramento State will play its final three regular season contests at home. That includes the team's first and only matchup with Eastern Washington.

Multimedia Options

• Every match the remainder of the season will be streamed live on ESPN+ as all home matches, and every contest played at a Big Sky venue will be streamed on the network. Video streams can be found on watchespn.com and the ESPN app.
• Reminder that all multimedia links, including video and live stats, can be found next to each game on the volleyball schedule at hornetsports.com.
• Live stats will be provided for every match - home and away - this year.

vs. This Week's Opponents

• Montana State enters the week with a 9-14 overall record and 5-6 league mark. The Bobcats have won three of their last five matches, and are 4-8 at home this year, including 3-3 vs. Big Sky teams.
• Sacramento State defeated the Bobcats on Oct. 8 in the Nest (25-19, 25-19, 25-14). In that match, the Hornets limited MSU to a .097 hitting percentage, the second lowest by any opponent this season.
• The Hornets are 48-9 all-time against Montana State, including the sweep in Sacramento earlier this year. Sacramento State is 17-7 when playing the Bobcats in Bozeman. The Hornets are 8-3 in Bozeman since Ruben Volta took over the head coaching duties in 2008.
• Montana, which hosts Portland State on Thursday, enters the week with a 14-9 overall record and 7-4 league mark. The Grizzlies are 5-3 at home, and 3-2 vs. Big Sky competition.
• In the Hornets' 3-1 win over the Griz on Oct. 6, Sacramento State had 15 aces (five from Bridgette Smith) while limiting Montana to a .131 hitting percentage. Seven different Hornets had aces.
• Sacramento State is 36-15 all-time against Montana, and has won six of the last seven meetings. That includes a 16-10 record when playing the Grizzlies in Missoula.
• The Hornets have not won both matches of a road trip to Montana (when playing both the Grizzlies and Bobcats on the same trip) since the 2007 season.

Against The Big Sky Conference

• Since joining the Big Sky in 1996, Sacramento State is 291-136 in conference play, which breaks down to a .681 winning percentage.
• The Hornets won the Big Sky's regular season and/or tournament championships 11 straight years from 1997-07. Between 1999 and 2007, the Hornets won 59 straight home matches vs. Big Sky teams.
• Sacramento State's last Big Sky crown was a 2017 regular season championship, prior to falling in five sets in that season's Big Sky Tournament title match at home to North Dakota.
• The Hornets have finished .500 or above in league play seven straight seasons, including a 10-6 mark each of the last two years. During that run, the Hornets have combined for an 87-39 Big Sky record, including a 54-8 mark at home.

Notables

• Libero Caty Cordano missed the Portland State and Northern Colorado matches with injury, but was back in Saturday's win over Northern Arizona. Cordano, who currently leads the Big Sky with 5.33 digs per set in league play, is just 26 shy of securing 1,000 career digs. She set the program record earlier this season with 43 digs in a road win at NAU.
• Last week, setter Ashtin Olin became just the seventh player in school history with 4,000 career assists. Olin, who is a super senior, has been named second team all-Big Sky each of the last four seasons. She has well-rounded numbers again this season, as Olin averages 0.66 kills, 9.36 assists, 2.60 digs and 0.78 blocks per set to go along with a .261 hitting percentage.
• Outside hitter Bridgette Smith has posted double figures in kills in 10 of the last 13 matches, and her average of 3.59 kills per set in league play trails only Montana's Paige Clark (3.93 kps). Smith also has double-doubles (kills and digs) in three of the last four games.
• Middle blocker Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin hit a season-best .727 (8-0-11) on Saturday against NAU, lifting her hitting percentage in league play to a team-high .341. That mark ranks fifth in the Big Sky. She also ranks fifth in the league with 1.10 blocks per set. Overall, her 106 blocks rank 36th in the nation.
• Middle blocker Kalani Hayes had 10 kills, seven blocks and a .667 hitting percentage on Saturday vs. NAU, lifting her numbers in conference play to 2.02 kills and 1.15 blocks per set to go with a .280 hitting percentage. That block average is the third best mark in the Big Sky.
• Outside hitter Caitlin Volkmann (2.68 kps, 1.24 dps, 0.39 bps) had a strong match the last time out against Montana State, finishing with seven kills in just 12 swings (.417 hitting percentage). Over her last three matches, she has combined for 32 kills and 24 digs.
• Sacramento State is second the conference in opponent hitting percentage (.156) in Big Sky matches. Of the Hornets 11 conference matches, only one team has hit at least .200 against Sacramento State's defense. Northern Colorado did it twice, and hit .230 on both occasions.