SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento State women's basketball team looks to snap out of its recent slide on the road this week, making the short trip to Stockton, Calif., to take on Pacific on Thursday (Dec. 4) at 6 p.m. at the Spanos Center. It will be the final game for the Hornets before final exams, which run from Dec. 6-11.
GAME #10
WHAT: Sacramento State (5-4, 0-0 Big Sky) at Pacific (3-4, 0-0 WCC)
WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025
TIME: 6 PM PT
WHERE: Stockton, Calif.
ARENA: Spanos Center
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: PacificTigers.com
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Pacific | Big Sky Conference
THE COACHES
• Sacramento State's Aaron Kallhoff enters his third year at the helm of the Hornets' program, posting a 26-47 mark and a 104-123 overall record in seven-plus seasons as a head coach
• Kallhoff claimed his 100th career win as a head coach in Sacramento State's 2025-26 season-opening win over Stanton University
• Bradley Davis is in his 11th season as head coach at Pacific and his 20th year on staff overall, posting a 143-171 record
NOTHING BUT NET
• Sacramento State is ranked No. 194 in the first NCAA women's basketball NET ratings of the season, while Pacific comes in at No. 228
NEW NEST
• After spending most of its history playing at The Nest, both the Sacramento State men's and women's basketball teams transition its home contests to the Hornet Pavilion located inside The WELL, an on-campus fitness complex that has renovated a portion of the facility to serve as the new home of the Hornets.
• The venue will seat approximately 3,000 fans -- nearly tripling the capacity of The Nest
• It was a giant facelift for the facility featuring (among other enhancements): re-striping of all courts to include the game court, telescopic bleachers around the center court, two new video boards, LED ribbon boards, new scoreboards, a new sound system, removal and replacement of existing lighting, new press tables and courtside seats, and new branding promoting Sacramento State and the city of Sacramento
"BIG" NEWS FOR 2026
• The 2025-26 campaign marks the 30th -- and final -- season as a member of the Big Sky Conference for the Hornets, who announced plans to move to the The Big West beginning in 2026-27
• Sacramento State could possibly face four of its future league rivals this year: UC San Diego (Nov. 12), Long Beach State (Nov. 15), Cal State Fullerton (Nov. 21), and UC Santa Barbara (Nov. 29)
• Another league opponent -- Causeway rival UC Davis -- is also on the schedule (Nov. 24), but the Aggies are departing for the Mountain West Conference following this year
• The Big West will be the third conference for the Hornets in their Division I history after playing in the America West Conference along with Cal Poly, CSUN, and Southern Utah from 1994-96, and then joining the Big Sky in 1996-97
ABOUT THE TIGERS
• Pacific enters the week with a 3-4 overall record, having won its last two after sweeping past Milwaukee (77-48) and Jacksonville State (70-63) in its own tournament over Thanksgiving weekend
• Thursday's game against Sacramento State will be the Tigers' seventh home game in eight games overall to start the year, entering the week with a 3-3 mark at home
• Pacific's only road game was a short trip to the Bay Area to take on California on Nov. 11
• The two programs have four opponents in common this year: UC San Diego, California Baptist, California, and Cal State Fullerton
• Pacific is 1-3 against that quartet to the Hornets' 2-2 record
• Sophomore forward Winner Bartholomew leads the team in both scoring (12.7 ppg) and rebounding (6.1 rpg), while shooting .507 from the field
• Senior wing Sydney Ward is also in double figures at 10.3 ppg, shooting .467 on the year and .862 from the line
• Pacific is averaging 62.1 ppg and shooting .398 from the field as a team, while opponents are averaging 64.4 ppg and shooting .378 from the floor
SERIES NOTABLES
• Pacific leads the all-time series with Sacramento State, 14-7, dating back to 1978
• Despite being separated by only 41 miles (as Google Maps flies), Thursday marks the first meeting between the two schools since the 2015 Postseason WNIT and the first regular season meeting since 2010
• The Hornets have won two of the last three games against the Tigers, including that WNIT first-round victory by the score of 87-79 in Stockton, Calif.
• Pacific posted its last win in the series in that 2010 regular season clash by the score of 94-86 on its home floor
• A win on Thursday would give Sacramento State back-to-back wins in the series (albeit nearly 10 years apart) for the first time ever
• Sacramento State has won only twice in 12 tries on the road against Pacific, adding a win in the first-ever meeting between the two in 1978 to the 2015 WNIT triumph
• Thursday marks the third straight meeting between the two programs to be played in Stockton, Calif.
• The Hornets are 5-4 against the Tigers at home
• The two haven't played in Sacramento since a 95-81 Hornet win on Feb. 13, 2010
• In the last five meetings, neither school has been held to fewer than 76 points in a game, with the winning team scoring at least 80 points in four of those five
CONFERENCE CALL
• Sacramento State is a combined 29-82 against the current West Coast Conference alignment
• Thursday's game against Pacific is the first against a WCC school this year, with a second scheduled against San Francisco on Dec. 17 at the Chase Center (home of the WNBA's Golden State Valkyries and the NBA's Golden State Warriors)
• The Hornets haven't faced a WCC opponent since a 70-65 defeat at Santa Clara on Nov. 29, 2023 at home
• Sacramento State's last win over a WCC school was a 73-63 triumph over the Broncos on Nov. 14, 2022 -- a win that snapped an eight-game skid against league opponents dating back to the Hornets' WNIT win in 2015 (not including a pair of losses to conference newcomer Seattle U in 2019-20 and 2021-22)
• The seven wins over Pacific are the most against any one WCC school in program history
SHADES OF GRAY
• Sophomore guard Rubi Gray continued her run of double-digit scoring performances over the weekend in Riverside, averaging 15.0 ppg and earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team at the CBU Classic
• Gray opened the tournament with a team-high 19 points (6-of-10 FG) against Chattanooga, then added 11 more to go with a career-high eight rebounds against host California Baptist 24 hours later
• The native of Tasmania has now reached double figures in each of her last six games -- including a pair of 20-plus point performances against UC San Diego (24) and Cal State Fullerton (career-high 26) -- averaging 17.5 ppg and 3.7 rpg while shooting .488 (42-for-86) from the field overall
• With her 19-point outburst against the Mocs, Gray now holds three of the top five single-game scoring performances by a Hornet this year
PICTON ALSO IN A GROOVE
• Limited to just five points against California Baptist last Saturday, the performance snapped a run of five straight double-digit performances for junior guard Natalie Picton
• Prior to that game, the junior had averaged 14.2 ppg and 3.4 rpg during her five-game run
• Picton has reached double figures in seven of her nine games this season, including a career-high tying 24 points against UC Davis on Nov. 24, hitting 8-of-16 from the field, including six three-pointers
• Her six makes from beyond the arc were the most in a game by a Hornet since Solape Amusan finished 6-of-7 from distance against Santa Clara on Nov. 29, 2023
HOLD THE LINE
• Picton has been early automatic from the line this season, shooting 93 percent (13-for-14) from the stripe
• The Welland, Ontario, native has drained her last 11 free throws without a miss, hitting her last three in a win over UC San Diego on Nov. 12, then eight straight against Long Beach State, Cal State Fullerton, and UC Davis
A "KEY" INGREDIENT
• Junior forward Keanna Salave'a has been the Hornets' best on the boards to start the season, finishing with six-or-more rebounds in a game five times in her first nine games at the Division I level -- including matching her Hornet career high with eight (to go with 11 points) against Chattanooga last week in Riverside
• Salave'a, who is also fifth on the team in scoring (6.8 ppg), ranks 10th in the Big Sky Conference in rebounding (6.0 rpg) entering the week and fourth in overall rebounds (54)
• She has also provided the Hornets with a valuable rim protector, leading the team and ranking third in the Big Sky with nine blocks
GUARDING THE GLASS
• Senior guard Benthe Versteeg also hasn't been afraid to mix it up and battle for rebounds inside this year, ranking fifth in the league -- and the only listed guard among the top five -- with 50 total rebounds and standing 12th at 5.6 rpg
• She has collected six-or-more rebounds four times in her last six games, including tying her career high with 12 boards as part of a double-double against UC Davis on Nov. 24
• The 12 rebounds enter the week ranked tied for third in a single game among Big Sky players
KEEPING IT 1,000
• Versteeg enters this week's contest continuing to inch her way toward a milestone, needing just 100 more points to reach 1,000 for her career
• Should she reach the plateau, Versteeg would become the 19th Hornet to accomplish the feat and the first since Summer Menke did it in 2022
HISTORIC HELPING HANDS
• With her 49 assists over her first nine games this season, Versteeg now has 495 for her career, moving her into second on the school's all-time list, trailing only record-holder Fantasia Hilliard (726 from 2011-15), on that chart
• That total also puts her among the top 15 in Big Sky Conference history, passing Southern Utah's Rebecca Cardenas (494 from 2016-20) and Eastern Washington's Jennifer Sutter (492 from 1993-97)
• Montana State's Hannah Caudill (2014-18) is ahead in 13th with 508, with Montana's Margaret Williams (1982-87) with 511 in 12th
DELICIOUS DISH
• Versteeg has posted five-or-more assists in seven of the team's nine games this season
• Her total of 49 assists and her 5.44 assists per game puts her atop the Big Sky in both categories entering this week, while ranking No. 21 and No. 25 in the nation, respectively, as of Nov. 30
• Her 49 assists are six ahead of last year's nine-game pace when she finished the campaign tying her own single-season record of 208
• With her seven assists against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 21 -- which tied her season high -- Versteeg posted her 32nd career game with seven-or-more assists with all of those coming in the last two-plus seasons (a total of 73 games)
TIME IS ON THEIR SIDE
• The Hornets' backcourt duo of Picton and Versteeg enters the week ranked 1-2 in the Big Sky in terms of minutes played (315 for Picton and 301 for Versteeg)
• Picton is second in the conference at 35.04 minutes per game, trailing only Northern Arizona's Naomi White (36.01 mpg), while Versteeg is third at 33.50 mpg
• No other Big Sky player enters the week having played more than 300 minutes this year thus far
• Thanks to those minutes, Versteeg has moved into fifth on the all-time minutes played list with 3,211 and, if she's able to replicate her total from each of the last two seasons, would break Kylie Kuhns' school career record of 3,804 minutes from 2009-13
• Meanwhile, for Picton, her time on the court is a big step up from last season when she played a total of 497 minutes in 31 games at Montana State, and is well above her average of 29.1 mpg in 29 games during her freshman season with the Bobcats in 2023-24
MISS STEAL YOUR BALL
• Picton has been sneaky to start the season, finishing with multiple steals in all nine of the Hornets' contests thus far
• Picton's 24 swipes put her second in the Big Sky standings in that category as of Nov. 30 and also ranks her No. 27 in the nation thus far
• As a team, the 26 steals against Stanton were four shy of the program's single-game mark of 30 set against Portland State on Feb. 7, 2015
• The total was also the highest in six seasons for the Hornets, who last posted a 20-plus steal game against Cal Maritime on Nov. 13, 2019, finishing with 28 in that contest
• Individually, Fatoumata Jaiteh's seven steals against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 21 currently stand as the most by a Big Sky player in a single game this season
PIN-POINT PAANANEN
• Sophomore guard Pinja Paananen has made a living from beyond the arc to start her Hornet career, with eight of her 13 makes from the field coming from distance
• The Finland native is shooting .565 overall and .615 from beyond the arc in just under 10 minutes per contest this year
• Her last five makes have all been three-pointers
JAETY ON THE SPOT
• Redshirt freshman guard Jaety Mandaquit had a career day against California Baptist last Saturday, finishing with a career-high seven points and four rebounds to go with a pair of assists, a block, and a steal against the Lancers
• It was the newcomer's first points since scoring her first career basket against Stanton University in the season opener on Nov. 3, and also marked the first assists and block of her career
DE-FENSE (CLAP, CLAP)...
• Sacramento State hasn't given up much this season, ranking third in the Big Sky Conference in scoring defense (60.7 ppg), rebounding defense (35.2 rpg), and field goal percentage defense (.375) while leading the league in three-point percentage defense (.266)
• It's a continuation of a trend that has seen the Hornets post two of the stingiest scoring defenses in school history in the last three years as they allowed 59.9 ppg in 2022-23 (second in school history) and gave up 63.6 ppg in 2024-25 (fourth in school history)
• The school record is 56.8 ppg allowed over 23 games in 1984-85
SHOOTING BLANKS
• Dating back to last season, Sacramento State's defense has held 10 of its last 12 opponents -- and 14 of its last 17 -- to under 40 percent from the field, including 28 percent by Northern Arizona in a 2025 Big Sky Tournament meeting
• Eight of those 17 opponents have made 20 (or fewer) field goals in a game, including only 12 by Weber State on Feb. 20 last season
• Meanwhile, the Hornets' offense has shot 40 percent or better 10 times in that same span
SHE CAN DO BOTH
• All nine of the Hornets' newcomers made their debuts in the green and gold in the win over Stanton -- among them, redshirt freshman Jaety Mandaquit, who walked on the team after wrapping up her second season with the Sacramento State women's soccer team
• Mandaquit becomes only the third two-sport student-athlete in the women's basketball program's Division I history, the first since 2001-02, and only the second women's soccer player to make the jump
• The other two student-athletes were: Allison Espinosa, a two-time All-American (1989-90) in volleyball who played women's basketball in 1990-91 and 1991-92 (42 career games, 3.8 ppg, 3.0 rpg, .477 FG%), and Lori Kerswell, a two-time All-Big Sky selection who played four years with the women's soccer team and joined the women's basketball team for one year in 2001-02 (22 games, nine starts, 4.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg).
• Trading her cleats for sneakers, Monday's debut for Mandaquit marked her first organized basketball contest since her junior year of high school
• She finished the win over Stanton with two points, three rebounds, and a pair of steals in 11 minutes against the Elks, scoring her first collegiate points with a lay-up in the third quarter
• Hailing from Hilo, Hawai'i, Mandaquit is only the second Hornet to come from the "Aloha State" and the first since Jordan Kealoha (Honolulu) played two seasons for Sacramento State in 2010-12
A RARE BREED
• According to a preseason survey of schools across the country, Mandaquit is one of only four two-sport women's basketball student-athletes across the country
• Lamar's Molly Powell and UCLA's Megan Grant are doubling-up in women's basketball and softball, while Saint Louis' Ellie Paloucek joined the Billikens' women's basketball team after playing 14 matches with the women's soccer program
LONG TIME COMING
• For the second time this season, the Hornets ended a rather lengthy drought of wins against an opponent with their win over Long Beach State
• The win over The Beach was the first by Sacramento State in the series dating back to a 74-67 triumph in 2011
• Earlier this year, the Hornets put an end to a 30-year drought against Nevada with a 65-45 win on Nov. 6 -- their first since a 64-60 victory in 1995
• Although the Hornets have now won three of the last four against Cal State Fullerton, they won their first against the Titans at home on Friday in a series that dates back to the 1976-77 season
