FRESNO, Calif. -- Sacramento State saw four starters hit better than .350 on the way to a three-set sweep of CSU Bakersfield (25-16, 25-16, 27-25) on Friday afternoon at the Save Mart Center.
Today's match was the opener of the three-day Central Cal Challenge, hosted by Fresno State. The Hornets play three times over three days, including matchups with Fresno State on Saturday, and Pacific on Sunday. CSU Bakersfield, which has wins this season against Oregon State and Nevada, dropped to 5-5 with the loss.
The Hornets have defeated Bakersfield on eight straight occasions, and have not lost to the Roadrunners since 2009.
Sacramento State (7-4 overall) has now won seven of its last nine matches, which includes a current three-game winning streak. The Hornets finished today's contest with a .315 hitting percentage, the second highest mark of the season (.319 vs. Saint Francis).
Ashlynn Archer (8 kills, 5 blk, .583 hit%),
Ellie Tisko (12 kills, .450 hit%),
Karlie Spohn (4 kills, 3 blk, .429 hit%) and
Caitlin Volkmann (8 kills, 12 digs, 5 blk, .353 hit%) all had healthy hitting percentages.
Sacramento State hit .375 in the first set, .379 in the second set, and had to use a big comeback in the third. In fact, the Hornets overcame 17-10 and 24-21 deficits, saving four set points along the way. During the set-closing 6-1 run, Sacramento State had solo blocks from Archer (twice) and Volkmann. Both Archer blocks saved set points.
Six different Hornets had kills, led by Tisko's 12. It marked the first time all season either Volkmann or
Bridgette Smith did not lead the team in kills. Tisko's 12 kills were one shy of a season high, and she also added two aces.
Smith also had double digits, finishing with 10 kills and a match-best five aces (one shy of her career high). She had five of the Hornets' nine aces,
All five of Archer's blocks were solo stuffs, and Volkmann's five blocks were a season best. Archer's eight kills came with just one error in 12 attacks.
Kate Doorn (19) and
Hailey Plugge (11) combined for 30 assists. Libero
Reese Ampi had seven digs.
The Hornets' match tomorrow at Fresno State will begin at 6 p.m., and will stream on ESPN+.
