The Week Ahead

• Sacramento State (9-7, 2-0) plays just once this week - at home vs. Portland State (9-4, 2-0) on Friday. First serve at the Nest is 7 p.m.
• Friday is Childhood Cancer Awareness, and fans that wear gold to the game will receive half off their admission. Penelope Calabrese, a 6-year old, joined the Hornets in April through Team IMPACT and will be Friday night's honorary captain. As a 4-year old, she was diagnosed with pediatric kidney cancer, and has since been declared cancer free.
• The Hornets opened Big Sky Conference play last week in victorious fashion, sweeping Northern Arizona at home, followed by a five-set road win at Weber State.
• On Monday, senior middle blocker Kalani Hayes was named the Big Sky's Defensive Player of the Week after averaging 2.38 blocks per set in last week's victories.
• Of the 10 teams in the Big Sky, only three remain undefeated after one week of league play. Sacramento State, Portland State and Montana State are all 2-0. That sets up a huge match on Friday between the Hornets and Vikings.
• Sacramento State is 6-3 at home this season, including last week's win over NAU. Dating back to 2015, the Hornets are 57-9 at home vs. Big Sky opposition.
• The Hornets will attempt to start a season 3-0 in the Big Sky for the second straight season, and the third time in eight seasons. Sacramento State accomplished the feat in 2016, 2017 and 2022.
• The Hornets have won at least nine conference matches each of the last eight years. That includes a 10-6 mark each of the last three seasons. During that eight-plus year stretch, the Hornets have combined for an 92-41 league record, which includes a 2017 Big Sky regular season championship.
• Sacramento State needs just three more wins to record its 300th conference victory since joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996. In its 28th year in the Big Sky, the Hornets are 297-138 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 (5.60 aps, 1.84 dps) and Kate Doorn (4.48 aps, 1.70 dps) handling the setting duties.
• Sacramento State has enjoyed sizable home crowds this season. Of the team's nine home matches thus far, the Hornets have played in front of 400+ fans in eight of those contests. That includes over 500 fans in five of them. Overall, the Hornets are averaging 504 fans per match.
• 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 Friday night's match vs. Portland State with play-by-play voice Will Schilling on the call.
• 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

• Sacramento State is 50-27 all-time against Portland State. The 50 victories are the second most against any opponent for the Hornets, trailing only the 54 wins against rival UC Davis.
• Between 1989 and 2004, Sacramento State defeated the Vikings on 23 straight occasions.
• However, the Hornets have lost the last three meetings with the Vikings. Of those three losses, two went to five sets. The Vikings swept the series last year with a 3-1 win in Portland, and a five-set win at the Nest.
• Sacramento State is 25-5 in the Nest against Portland State. The teams have split the last four meetings on the Hornets' home floor.

Playing The Defense

• Sacramento State's defense has been good throughout the season, as the Hornets rank first in the Big Sky in a number of categories, and have limited the opposition to a .177 hitting percentage.
• The Hornets are 65th in the nation with 2.66 blocks per set (among 334 Div. I teams), and also rank 52nd in opponent hitting percentage.
• Sacramento State leads the Big Sky in lowest opponent hitting percentage, opponent assists (9.89 per set), and opponent kills (10.70 per set).
• Last week, the Hornets held Northern Arizona to a .027 hitting percentage, and Weber State to a .139 percentage. Both of those marks were the second lowest figures of the season for NAU and Weber.
• Statistically speaking, its very easy to figure out if the Hornets will win or lose based on the opponent hitting percentage. Sacramento State is 9-0 when holding an opponent below .200, and 0-7 when the opposition hits above .200.

Hayes Named Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week

• On Monday, senior middle blocker Kalani Hayes was named the Big Sky's Defensive Player of the Week after leading a Hornet defense that limited NAU and Weber State to a .094 hitting percentage.
• Hayes finished the week with 19 blocks, and 2.38 blocks per set. The Clackamas, Ore., native had a career-high 12 blocks at Weber State, and was the catalyst for a Hornet defense that recorded a season-best 17.0 team blocks.
• She also performed well offensively with 2.25 kills per set and a .441 hitting percentage.
• Overall, Hayes is now averaging 2.08 kills and 1.10 blocks per set while hitting a team-high .312. The blocks are third best in the Big Sky, and the hitting percentage ranks fifth.
• Her .313 career hitting percentage is tied for the eighth best mark in program history.

Notables

• Libero Caty Cordano has registered double figures in digs in all but one match this season, and now has 1,328 for her career. Her career average of 3.70 digs per set ranks as the ninth best mark in program history. This is the fourth straight season Cordano is the team's starting libero.
• Senior rightside hitter Caitlin Volkmann has now started 56 straight matches dating back to 2021, and could become the Hornets' second player to reach 1,000 kills this season. Volkmann, who is averaging 2.37 kills per set, currently has 835 kills and has averaged 2.48 kills during her career.
• The Hornets closed the fifth set of the Weber State victory on a 6-0 run after the score had been 9-9. Abbey Kadillak served out each of the final five points of that rally.
• Outside hitter Bridgette Smith, who recently surpassed the 1,000 career kills milestone, combined for 31 kills last week. This season, she is averaging 3.33 kills and 3.75 points per set, both marks are the sixth best in the Big Sky. She has registered double figures in kills 59 times during her career.
• Setter Kate Doorn started her first match of the season in Saturday's win at Weber State, and responded with season highs in assists (31) and digs (12). She is now the team leader with six double-double this season.
• Outside hitter Ellie Tisko's 151 kills are already 26 more than she had all of last season. She has registered double-figure kills eight times this year, and 10 times during her career.
• Middle blocker Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin has recorded at least five blocks in three straight matches, and her average of 1.08 blocks per set ranks fifth in the Big Sky.