The Week Ahead

• Currently one of four teams in the Big Sky Conference with perfect 2-0 league records, Sacramento State (9-6, 2-0) will begin a three-match homestand. That includes just one match this week - Friday night vs. Portland State (3-10, 2-0) at 7 p.m.
• The Hornets, Portland State, Idaho State and Weber State are the Big Sky teams that remain undefeated through the first week of conference play. All four teams are 2-0.
• Sacramento State opened league last week with a pair of four-set victories - Thursday at home vs. Montana State, and Saturday at Eastern Washington.
• Friday night will begin a stretch that sees the Hornets play three straight home matches between Oct. 4-12. That includes Northern Arizona on Oct. 10, and Northern Colorado on Oct. 12.
• The Hornets will play four of their first five conference matches at home. However, after that stretch ends, the team will play seven of its next nine on the road.
• The Hornets have yet to lose at home this season (4-0). That includes a 3-0 record at the Sacramento State Invitational during the second week of the season, and last week's win over Montana State.
• Since 2015, Sacramento State has combined for a 105-44 conference record (.705 winning percentage), and a 64-10 home record against league foes during that span. That includes Big Sky regular season championships in 2023 and 2017.
• The Hornets have used the same starting lineup in every match this season - Kate Doorn at setter, Bridgette Smith and Caitlin Volkmann at outside hitter, Ashlynn Archer and Karlie Spohn at middle blocker, Ellie Tisko on the right side, and both Reese Ampi and Abbey Kadillak at libero.
• Of the 334 Div. I volleyball playing schools, Sacramento State currently ranks in the top 30 in aces (12th - 106), kills (22nd - 722) and assists (29th - 660).
• Of the team's six losses, five have come against programs ranked among the top 75 in the nation according to the Massey Ratings, a metric similar to the RPI. That includes #23 Arkansas and #33 Michigan. Among the Hornet losses, the only team not in the top 75 is Fresno State (#133). Currently, Sacramento State is ranked 107th.
• The Hornets have won at least nine conference matches each of the last nine years. That includes 10-plus wins four consecutive seasons. Last season's team finished 13-3 in league, and won the Big Sky regular season championship.
• There are 10 teams in the Big Sky. Each team will play 16 conference matches. Sacramento State will play seven of those teams twice, and once vs. Idaho and Montana.
• The Hornets have yet to lose a five-set match: 4-2 in three sets, 3-4 in four, and 2-0 in five.

Multimedia Options

• Every match the remainder of the season will air on ESPN+. That includes Friday's matchup vs. Portland State, and next week's matches vs. Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado.
• For the fourth straight year, all of Sacramento State's home matches, as well as road games at a Big Sky Conference venue, will be streamed on ESPN+.
• Multimedia links, including video, audio and tickets, can be found next to each match on the volleyball schedule at hornetsports.com.

vs. This Week's Opponents

• Sacramento State and Portland State will face each other for the 80th time. That is the second longest rivalry against any school for the Hornets (trailing 81 matches vs. UC Davis).
• The Hornets are 51-28 against Portland State, including a 26-5 record at home.
• Each of the last six meetings have been decided in four or five sets. The two teams split the season series a year ago, with each team winning on its home floor in four sets.
• Although Sacramento State has owned the all-time series, Portland State has won four of the last five meetings. The Vikings had won three straight until the Hornets' win last season.
• Both teams joined the Big Sky in 1996, and since that time, Sacramento State is 40-16 in league play vs. the Vikings.

Outside Hitter Tandem Off To Huge Start

• Starting outside hitters Bridgette Smith and Caitlin Volkmann have been incredible thus far.
• Smith is 28th in the country with 211 kills, while Volkmann is 43rd with 199. The pair is one of just two sets of teammates to rank in the top 50 in that category. St. John's Erin Jones (6th) and Giorgia Walther (32nd) are the others. In addition, they both rank in the top 40 in points (Smith 15th, Volkmann 40), joining the St. John's duo as the only set of teammates ranking among the top 50 in that category.
• The pair currently ranks among the top four players in the Big Sky in kills per set. Smith, the reigning Big Sky MVP, is third at 3.77 kps while Volkmann is fourth at 3.55 kps.
• Smith ranks second in the conference in points (4.53 pps) while Volkmann is fourth (4.11 pps).
• Either Smith (8 times) or Volkmann (6 times) has led the team in kills in all but one match this season. Ellie Tisko paced the team in kills in the win over CSU Bakersfield.
• Both players are fifth-year seniors. Last week, Smith became the fifth player in Hornet history, and 11th in Big Sky history, to reach 1,500 career kills. Volkmann has 1,186 kills, and is seeking to become the 17th Hornet to reach 1,200 kills.

From The Service Line

• The Hornets have been very good at the service line, currently ranking 12th in the nation in aces (106). That mark is tops in the Big Sky, as is the team's average of 1.89 aces per set.
• Smith is the conference leader at 0.57 aces per set. Her total number of 32 aces rank as the seventh best mark in the country.
• The team has registered at least six aces in all but four matches. That includes a combined 18 aces last week - nine vs. both Montana State and Eastern Washington.

Hornet Notables

• Middle blocker Ashlynn Archer was named the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. She led the Big Sky last week with 14 blocks, including a career-best eight at Eastern Washington. She has combined for 28 blocks over her last five matches, improving her season average to 1.02 per set. Her .312 hitting percentage is the seventh best mark in the Big Sky.
• For the second straight season, the Hornets are running a 6-2 offense with setters Kate Doorn (6.05 aps) and Hailey Plugge (4.14 aps) quarterbacking a Sacramento State offense that currently ranks second in the Big Sky in both kills (12.89 kps), and points (16.73 pps).
• Rightside hitter Ellie Tisko has tallied double-figure kills four times in the last five matches, after doing so twice in the first 10 contests. Over that five-match span, she is averaging 2.63 kills while hitting .275. Last week, she had 10 kills vs. both Montana State and Eastern Washington.
• The Hornets have been employing two liberos - Reese Ampi (2.63 dps) on defense, and Abbey Kadillak (1.16 dps) on serve receive. The two have combined to average 3.79 digs per set.
• Middle blocker Karlie Spohn, in her first active season, was very good in her first-ever Big Sky Conference matches. Last week, Spohn averaged 1.38 kills and 1.00 blocks per set while hitting .320. That included six kills, three blocks and a .500 hitting percentage at Eastern Washington.
• The Hornets have a combined 47 blocks over the last five matches, after combining for just 62 blocks through the first 10 matches of the season.