The Week Ahead

• Sacramento State (10-7, 3-0) will play a pair of matches on the road this week - Thursday at Idaho (1-15, 0-4) at 6 p.m., followed by a Saturday matchup at Eastern Washington (7-9, 1-3) at noon.
• Through two weeks of conference play, the Hornets are the Big Sky's only unbeaten team in league play. Sacramento State is 3-0, followed by Weber State (3-1), and four teams that are 2-1. That one loss for Weber State came against the Hornets in Ogden.
• The Hornets are coming off a spirited 3-1 home victory over Portland State on Friday. That matchup was a battle of the Big Sky's last two unbeaten teams, and the Hornets rang up a season-high 18.0 team blocks, including a career-best 12 from Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin.
• Speaking of Kamba-Griffin, she was named the Big Sky's Defensive Player of the Week on Monday for her efforts in the win over the Vikings.
• Sacramento State will attempt to start a Big Sky season 4-0 for the first time since the 2017 team opened the year by winning 10 straight conference matches.
• The Hornets are 3-4 away from home this season, including 1-2 in a true road match. That one win came in a five-set victory at Weber State two weeks ago. Perhaps the team's most impressive performance of the season came in a five-set road loss at third-ranked Florida on Sept. 7.
• Sacramento State has finished Big Sky play 10-6 each of the last three seasons, and will look to better that mark this year.
• The NCAA's first RPI report came out on Monday. Of the nation's 344 Div. I programs, the Big Sky has six teams that rank between Nos. 121-169. That includes Northern Colorado (121), Portland State (145), Sacramento State (147), Weber State (161), Montana (162) and Montana State (169).
• Speaking of rankings, the Hornets sit among the nation's top 40 teams in seven different categories. That includes fifth in blocks (169.5), 19th in kills (847), 22nd in assists (778), 31st in attacks (2,255), 36th in blocks per set (2.53), 39th in digs (964) and 40th in opponent hitting percentage (.165).
• Sacramento State needs just two more wins to record its 300th conference victory since joining the Big Sky in 1996. In its 28th year in the Big Sky, the Hornets are 298-138 in conference play during that time, good for a .683 winning percentage. That includes Big Sky regular season and/or tournament titles in 12 different seasons.
• The Hornets have run a 6-2 offense in every match this season, with Hailey Plugge (5.54 aps, 1.85 dps) and Kate Doorn (4.57 aps, 1.70 dps) handling the setting duties.
• Only four Hornets have started every match this season - middle blockers Kalani Hayes and Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin, rightside hitter Caitlin Volkmann, and libero Caty Cordano.

Multimedia Options

• Every match the remainder of the season - home and away - will be streamed on ESPN+. That includes both road matches this week.
• Matches on ESPN+ can be found on watchespn.com and the ESPN app.
• Live stats will be offered for every match this season.
• Reminder that all multimedia links can be found on the volleyball schedule at hornetsports.com.

Against This Week's Opponents

• In a series that dates back to 1986, Sacramento State is 10-6 all-time vs. Idaho. The Hornets have defeated the Vandals on six straight occasions, as Idaho's last win in the series came in Moscow in five sets in 2019. In a series littered with close outcomes, the teams have played to four or five sets in nine straight matchups.
• Sacramento State swept last year's two games, winning each by 3-1 scores.
• The Hornets are 3-3 when playing in Moscow, including wins in 2021 and 2022.
• Since joining the Big Sky in 1996, Sacramento State's biggest rival has been Eastern Washington. Though the rivalry has simmered over the years, the two teams were fierce competitors for a decade.
• In fact, Sacramento State and Eastern Washington squared off in the Big Sky Tournament championship match in 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. The Hornets defeated the Eagles in each of those matchups except 2001. That includes victories on the Eagles' home floor from 2002-04.
• The Hornets are 41-18 all-time against Eastern Washington, including four straight wins.
• Sacramento State is 13-12 when playing in Cheney, including four straight wins on Eastern's home floor. The last Eagle win over the Hornets in Cheney came during the 2015 season.

Block Party

• Sacramento State's defense has been stout all year, as the Hornets rank first in the Big Sky and 40th in the nation limiting the opposition to a .165 hitting percentage.
• A big part of that defensive prowess has been the team's blocking. In fact, Sacramento State is fifth in the nation in total blocks (169.5) and 36th in blocks per set (2.53).
• Remarkably, the Hornets have two players that rank in the top 20 in the nation in total blocks - Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin is 13th with 79 blocks, and Kalani Hayes is 19th with 74 blocks. The duo has been a huge factor in the Hornets combining for 49 blocks over their last three matches.
• The Hornets are averaging a whopping 4.08 blocks per set in Big Sky play, with the next closest conference team averaging 2.50 (Montana). The Hornets have at least 14.0 blocks in every league match.
• Sacramento State has limited Big Sky opposition to a .111 hitting percentage thus far.
• Statistically speaking, its very easy to figure out if the Hornets will win or lose based on the opponent hitting percentage. Sacramento State is 10-0 when holding an opponent below .200, and 0-7 when the opposition hits above .200.

Kamba-Griffin Named Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week

• On Monday, senior middle blocker Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin was named the Big Sky's Defensive Player of the Week after leading a Hornet defense that limited Portland State to a .142 hitting percentage.
• Kamba-Griffin finished with a career-high 12 blocks, tying for the most by a Big Sky player this year.
• The 12 blocks also tied for the 10th most in program history. She had multiple blocks in all four sets, and had a block on set point in the second frame vs. Portland State to deliver a 25-23 win.
• The Davis, Calif., native has registered at least five blocks in four straight matches.
• Overall, she is now averaging 1.00 kills, 1.20 blocks and a .290 hitting percentage. In league play, her blocking average sits at a robust 1.92 blocks per set.
• Her 79 total blocks are currently the 13th best mark in the country.

Notables

• Caty Cordano, in her fourth season as the Hornets' starting libero, currently leads the Big Sky with 4.92 digs per set in league play. She has at least 17 digs against all three Big Sky opponents thus far.
• Middle blocker Kalani Hayes has been brilliant all season, and that has carried into Big Sky play. Among conference leaders in league play, she is first in blocks per set (2.00) and second in hitting percentage (.429). Hayes is hitting .317 overall with 2.04 kills and 1.10 blocks.
• Senior rightside hitter Caitlin Volkmann, who has started 57 straight matches, has 33 kills over her last two matches and was the Hornets' offensive spark in Friday's win vs. Portland State (16 kills).
• Senior outside hitter Bridgette Smith, who recently surpassed 1,000 career kills, has at least 13 kills in every Big Sky match thus far. Her average of 3.67 kills in league ranks fifth in the Big Sky.
• Rightside hitter Ellie Tisko is hitting .341 with a combined 20 kills over the last two matches.