MISSOULA, Mont. -- Montana hit .354 and had 15 more kills than the Hornets on the way to a three-set sweep (25-21, 25-23, 25-19) of Sacramento State on Thursday evening at Dahlberg Arena.

The match was the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams.

The Grizzlies extended their winning streak to nine matches (longest in over three decades) while improving to 9-3 overall and 1-0 in league. Sacramento State had its four-match winning streak snapped while falling to 7-6 and 0-1. 

The Hornets, who have won Big Sky championships each of the last two years, had not been swept on the road by a Big Sky opponent in nearly three years - last coming Oct. 13, 2022, at Weber State.

Montana, who used a variety of tips and dumps all evening, had 52 kills with just 12 errors in 113 swings. The .354 hitting percentage is the highest mark allowed by the Hornets since UTEP hit .368 in the season opener. Conversely, Sacramento State hit .233 with 37 kills. The Hornets were limited to a season-low three blocks.

Victoria Marthaler had a match-high 17 kills, seven more than any other Hornet. She has led the team in that category in all but two matches this season. Keonahi'ilani Solaita posted season highs in kills (10) and digs (8) to go with a .409 hitting percentage. No other Sacramento State player had more than three kills.

Middle blocker Ashlynn Archer finished with three kills, snapping her streak of seven straight matches with double-digit kills. Greta Davis had three kills, Skyler Gartin a pair of blocks, and libero Reese Ampi led all players with 10 digs.

Sacramento State returns to action on Saturday at home vs. Weber State at 2 p.m. The match will serve as the Hornets' Big Sky home opener.