The Week Ahead

• Sacramento State (19-9, 12-2) will enter the final week of the regular season with a lot on the line.
• The Hornets will play twice on the road against the Montana schools - Thursday at Montana State (17-7, 9-4), and Saturday at Montana (10-16, 6-8). Both matches start at 6 p.m. PT.
• By virtue of Weber State's loss to Montana State on Saturday, the Hornets have clinched at least a share of the Big Sky Conference regular season championship.
• The Hornets need to win just once this week to win the regular season title outright. Should the Hornets win the championship outright, they would assume the No. 1 seed at this year's Big Sky Tournament in Greeley, and host next year's conference tournament.
• Sacramento State is first in the conference standings with its 12-2 record, followed by three teams who all sit at 10-4 in league: Montana State, Weber State and Northern Colorado. All three of those teams are pushing to gain a share of the regular season crown with the Hornets.
• The Hornets played once last week, and fell on the road at Portland State, 3-1, including 32-30 in the fourth set. In that fourth set, Sacramento State could not convert on any of its five set points.
• That loss snapped a seven-match winning streak, and was the Hornets' first defeat on the road against a Big Sky opponent (5-1).
• Sacramento State's regular season title is its first since 2017, and 10th overall since joining the Big Sky in 1996. The Hornets will be seeking their 10th Big Sky Tournament crown later this month in Greeley.
• This year's Big Sky Tourney will take place Nov. 22-24 on Northern Colorado's home floor. The top eight teams in the Big Sky qualify, with the winner earning an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
• The Hornets' 12-2 conference record is the team's best mark since the 2017 squad finished 15-1.
• Sacramento State's seven-match winning streak had been the longest since the 2017 team won 10 in a row.
• The Hornets are one win shy of 20 overall victories. The last 20-win season was the 2017 team finishing 26-10 and 15-1 in league.
• Prior to this season, the Hornets had gone 10-6 in conference play each of the last three years.
• Head coach Ruben Volta recently won his 250th career match at Sacramento State (now has 255). Since 2015, Volta has guided the Hornets to a 162-106 overall record, and a 102-43 mark in league play.
• Sacramento State has played just one five-set match (the win at Weber State) vs. Big Sky opposition.
• In conference play, Sacramento State currently leads the Big Sky in eight different categories. That includes first in points (18.68 pps), kills (14.22 kps), hitting percentage (.267), blocks (2.98 bps) and opponent hitting percentage (.148). The Hornets are 27th in the nation overall in opponent hit% (.164).

Multimedia Options

• Every match the remainder of the season - home, away and neutral - will stream on ESPN+. That includes both matches this week, and next week's Big Sky Tournament.
• 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 Opponent

• Montana State enters the week with a 17-7 overall record and 10-4 conference mark. The Bobcats are 10-1 at home (5-1 against Big Sky opponents). That lone home loss came to Northern Colorado.
• In a series that dates back to 1978, Sacramento State is 49-10 all-time against Montana State, including a 3-1 victory over the Bobcats on Oct. 21 at the Nest.
• The Hornets are 17-7 on the road against Montana State, but the Bobcats have won each of the last three meetings on their home floor. The last Hornet win in Bozeman came in 2018 (a 3-1 win).
• The two teams have split the season series each of the last two years, with each team winning on its home floor.
• Montana enters the week with a 10-16 overall record, and 6-8 in league. The Grizzlies have dropped five of their last seven matches, and are 4-5 overall at home (4-2 against conference competition).
• Sacramento State is 39-15 all-time against Montana, which includes five straight, and nine of the last 10 wins in the series. One of those victories came in four sets on Oct. 19 at the Nest.
• The Hornets are 15-10 in Missoula, and have won three of the last four on Montana's home floor.
• Each of the last four outcomes in the series have been decided in four sets with Hornets winning.
• From 1999-2008, Sacramento State won 18 straight matches against Montana.

Playing The Defense

• Sacramento State's defense has been stout all year, as the Hornets rank first in the Big Sky and 27th in the nation limiting the opposition to a .164 hitting percentage.
• A big part of that defensive prowess has been the team's blocking. In fact, Sacramento State is 14th in the nation in total blocks (269.5) and 28th in blocks per set (2.57).
• The Hornets have two players that rank in the top 50 in the nation in total blocks - Kalani Hayes is 24th with 127 blocks, and Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin is 46th with 118 blocks. The duo has been a huge factor in the Hornets registering 10+ team blocks in eight of the team's 14 conference matches. That includes at least eight team blocks in all but two matches.
• The Hornets are averaging 2.98 blocks per set in Big Sky play, and conference opposition has been held to a .148 hitting percentage. In fact, only three Big Sky teams (Weber State, Northern Colorado, Portland State) have hit better than .200 against Sacramento State this season.
• Statistically speaking, its very easy to figure out if the Hornets will win or lose based on the opponent hitting percentage. Sacramento State is 18-0 when holding an opponent below .200, and 1-9 when the opposition hits above .200. That lone win came at Northern Colorado when the Bears hit .212.

Hornet Players Sitting Atop Big Sky Rankings

• Not only does Sacramento State sit atop the Big Sky rankings (in conference play) in most team categories, but Hornet players lead the conference in multiple categories.
• That includes outside hitter Bridgette Smith leading the conference with 4.16 kills and 4.79 points per set. She has at least 11 kills in 13 of the team's 14 matches vs. the Big Sky. Impressively, Smith is ninth in the league with a .290 hitting percentage despite being a six rotation outside hitter
• Middle blocker Kalani Hayes sits atop the Big Sky in blocks per set (1.54) and is third in hitting percentage at .387. She has hit better than .310 in 12 of the Hornets' 14 games vs. Big Sky teams.
• Middle blocker Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin is hitting .483 in conference play, which would easily rank as the top spot if she had enough attempts to qualify for the leader board. Amazingly, she has hit at least .400 in each of the last eight matches.

Notables

• Caty Cordano is two digs shy of becoming the 11th player in program history to register 1,500 career digs. As of now, her 1,498 digs are the most by a Hornet since Lexie Skalbeck had 1,767 from 2013-16.
• Rightside hitter Caitlin Volkmann is just 67 kills away from reaching the 1,000 kill milestone.
• If the season ended today, Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin's .397 hitting percentage would rank as the top mark in Sacramento State single-season history.
• Despite running a 6-2 offense all season, both Hornet setters - Kate Doorn 7th with 6.20 aps, Hailey Plugge 8th with 5.26 aps - rank among the Big Sky's top 10 players in assists in conference play.