Sacramento State looks to continue it’s torrid play this week as it welcomes Weber State (Friday, Oct. 19, 7 p.m.) and Idaho State (Saturday, Oct. 20, 4 p.m.) to Hornet Gym. Friday’s match will be a battle for first place in the Big Sky Conference standings as both Weber State and Sacramento State will enter the contest tied for first place with identical 6-1 conference records. Saturday’s match against Idaho State can be heard over the airwaves on KTKZ 1380 AM with Steve McElroy handling the play-by-play. The match, which marks the first of two Hornet volleyball contests that will be aired by 1380 AM (the other being Nov. 10 against Portland State), can also be heard via the internet at www.hornetsports.com.

The Hornets are currently riding a five-match winning streak and have won 15-consecutive games over that span. After losing the first two games of the Northern Arizona match on Sept. 29, Sacramento State won the next three games and has swept Montana State, Montana, Portland State and Eastern Washington in succession. Sacramento State is currently a season-high seven matches over .500 at 12-5 overall. Additionally, the Hornets have won nine of their last 11 matches and are 4-0 at home this season.

Below Sacramento State and Weber State in the standings is a three-way logjam for third place as Montana State, Eastern Washington and Northern Arizona each have 4-3 records. Each team has seven conference matches to play and the top six teams in the conference advance to the Big Sky Tournament, Nov. 15-17. The top team in the regular season will host the tournament. Sacramento State is looking to serve as hosts for the fifth-consecutive year.

Weber State has been the surprise team of the Big Sky thus far and enters the week with a 10-6 overall record and a 6-1 conference mark. The Wildcats, who haven’t finished higher than fifth place in the Big Sky standings in the last six years, have won five-consecutive matches and nine of their last 10. This comes after the team opened the season with a 1-5 record. Weber State defeated Sacramento State, 3-1, in Ogden, Utah, earlier this season and have also beaten Montana State, Eastern Washington and Northern Arizona. Sacramento State has never lost to Weber State at home (5-0) and owns a 10-4 all-time mark against the Wildcats. WSU, which is 3-3 on the road, plays at Utah on Tuesday before Friday’s showdown.

Idaho State enters the week with a 7-11 overall record and a 2-5 mark in the Big Sky. The Bengals have lost seven of their last 10 matches, but defeated Oregon, 3-2, at home on Sunday. The Bengals currently hold the sixth and final playoff spot in the conference standings. The team is 1-2 on the road this season and has not played away from home since defeating Montana, 3-1, on Sept. 29. Sacramento State defeated Idaho State on the road in five games earlier this season and have won nine-consecutive matches (over a span of five years) over the Bengals. The Hornets are 10-1 all-time against Idaho State.

Head Coach Debby Colberg

For the 26th-straight season, Debby Colberg will control the Hornet sidelines. During her tenure, Colberg has posted a 663-234 record (.739 winning percentage) and has led the team to 12 league titles and 20 postseason berths. Her 663 wins rank eighth on the all-time NCAA list among coaches with at least five years of Div. I experience. Last season, Colberg was named the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year for the third time in the last four years. During her tenure, she has been honored as league coach of the year six times, regional coach of the year four times and national coach of the year once.

Colberg came to Sacramento State in 1976 and finished 9-8 in her first season. She captured her first league title in 1978 when the team posted a 12-2 mark in the Golden State Conference. Colberg guided the Hornets to the Div. II national championship in 1981, including two third-place finishes (1983-84) and a second-place finish in 1989. She has coached just two losing squads and her teams have averaged 26.0 wins per year.

The Hornets have posted a 243-80 (.752) record since moving to Div. I in 1991. In addition to leading the Hornets to four-consecutive NCAA Div. I Tournament appearances, she has also had the added responsibility of serving as the school’s athletic director since February of 1999.

A Look at Last Week’s Action

Sacramento State rattled off its eighth and ninth sweeps of the season as it defeated both Portland State (30-23, 30-16, 30-25) and Eastern Washington (30-23, 30-23, 30-24) in back-to-back days on the road last week.

Friday, senior Tasman Dwyer recorded a match-high 14 kills and junior Jayme Wright led all players with 13 digs to lead Sacramento State to the victory over the Vikings. Sophomore Kazmiera Imrie added eight kills and Lisa Beauchene notched six kills, four blocks and 38 assists. Sacramento State hit .340 for the match, its second-highest mark against any team this season. The Hornets held the Vikings to a .231 hitting percentage and have now beaten the Vikings 16-consecutive times over the last 12 seasons.

Saturday, Wright led the team in both kills (13) and digs (11) and Dwyer chipped in 11 kills as the Hornets dealt Eastern Washington just its second loss in its last 32 matches at home. Imrie added nine kills and Beauchene finished with five kills, a .444 hitting percentage, 40 assists, six digs and three blocks. The Hornets held the advantage over the Eagles in virtually every statistical category including kills (49-44), hitting percentage (.304-.205), digs (42-37) and team blocks (7.0-3.0).

Hornets On Fire

The Sacramento State volleyball team is on an incredible roll right now. Below are some of the superlatives and streaks during the Hornets’ season:

– The Hornets have won five-straight matches and 15-consecutive games over that span. The Div. I-era records for consecutive victories and games won is 16 and 24, respectively, set by the 1995 team.

– The Hornets have been awarded back-to-back Big Sky Player of the Week honors (Lisa Beauchene last week and Tasman Dwyer this week).

– Sacramento State has swept four-straight opponents and is 9-1 in three-game matches.

– The Hornets’ victory over Eastern Washington marked the first time EWU had been swept at home since Oct. 11, 1996. It marked Sacramento State’s first victory at EWU in three years.

– Sacramento State has hit at least .300 in three-straight matches after doing so just once in its first 14 contests of the season.

– The Hornets have allowed just one opponent a hitting percentage above .300 all season long and have held the opposition to a .158 hitting percentage.

– Sacramento State is currently first among Big Sky teams in digs (16.25 per game) and second in kills (15.06 per game).

– The Hornets are 2-2 against teams that reached the NCAA Tournament last year including three-game sweeps of Arkansas-Little Rock and Morgan State.

Dwyer Named Big Sky Player Of The Week

Senior middle hitter Tasman Dwyer was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week after combining to record a .579 hitting percentage and per game averages of 4.17 kills and 0.83 blocks last week. Dwyer’s total of 25 kills came with just three errors in 38 total attacks. During the Hornets’ current five-match winning streak, Dwyer has hit .462 with 3.47 kills and 0.94 blocks per game.

In Friday’s victory over Portland State, Dwyer led all players with 14 kills and a .600 hitting percentage. Against Eastern Washington on Saturday, Dwyer had 11 kills and led all players with a .556 hitting percentage as she recorded just one error in 18 total attacks.

A unanimous first team all-Big Sky selection last season, Dwyer has recorded double figures in kills in eight of her last nine matches and has a .343 hitting percentage over that span. Additionally, the senior has hit above .430 in four of her last five matches. For the season, the middle hitter leads the team in kills (207, 3.29 per game) and is second in hitting percentage (.319) and blocks (1.06 per game). Among Big Sky leaders, she is fifth in hitting percentage and eighth in blocks. Earlier this year, she became just the seventh player in Sacramento State history to reach 1,000 career kills, and currently has 1,070.

Conference Dominance

Since joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996, Sacramento State has posted the best conference winning percentage of the league’s eight teams. The Hornets are 71-16 (.816), followed by Eastern Washington (62-25) with the second best winning percentage. Northern Arizona (53-34) and Montana State (53-34) are the other schools with winning league records. Weber State (36-51), Montana (34-53), Idaho State (21-66) and Portland State (13-74) round out the field.

Home Cooking

Since Sacramento State joined the Big Sky Conference in 1996, the Hornets have recorded a 44-6 record at Hornet Gym against conference competition. The team went a perfect 10-0 last season and has a 30-2 combined record at home against Big Sky opposition over the last three years (the team’s two losses came to Montana and Cal State Northridge in 1999). The Hornets have won each of their last 13 Big Sky matches at home and will look to extend that streak this week. Against all competition (including non-conference opponents) over the last five years, the team has combined to go 63-13 in Hornet Gym.

Kaz In Control

Sophomore middle hitter Kazmiera Imrie continued her sizzling stretch with two more impressive matches last week. The Fairfield, Calif., native combined for 17 kills, five blocks and a .355 hitting percentage in two matches. Over her last five matches, Imrie is averaging 2.60 kills, 1.55 digs and 1.25 blocks per game. She has also hit .299 (52-20-107) over that stretch. Imrie, who has become a full-rotation player this season, has already set or tied five single-match career highs, including kills (12), digs (15) and total blocks (10.0). Imrie is currently first on the Hornets and sixth in the Big Sky with 1.22 blocks per game.

Beau Knows Volleyball

Sophomore Lisa Beauchene continued what is quickly turning out to be an incredible season for the 5-10 setter. Over her last four matches, the Auburn, Wash., native is averaging 2.25 kills, 12.00 assists, 2.75 digs and 1.08 blocks per game, not to mention an incredible .571 hitting percentage. Beauchene, who received Big Sky Player of the Week honors last week, is currently tied for first in the nation (among Div. I players) with three triple-doubles. A second-team all-conference selection and Big Sky Tournament MVP last season, Beauchene is currently first in the conference in hitting percentage (.347) while also sitting third in assists (10.87 per game) and fifth in digs (3.24 per game). Despite being a setter, Beauchene is second amongst the Hornets in digs, four in blocks and sixth in kills.

Wright On Track

Despite playing with a sprained ankle last week, junior Jayme Wright still managed to lead the Hornets in digs in both matches and paced the team in kills against Eastern Washington. The Pleasanton, Calif., native has recorded double figures in digs in five-consecutive matches and nine of the last 10. She has posted seven double-doubles (kills and digs) this season and leads the Hornets with 3.32 digs per game. In conference games, Wright leads the Big Sky with 3.92 digs per game and is averaging 3.97 digs per game over her last nine matches overall.

Additional Hornet Notes

Sacramento State will play each of its next four matches in Hornet Gym where the team is already 4-0 this season...senior Kelly Voeltz has notched at least seven kills in eight of her last nine matches...senior Alison Gahr sat out last Friday’s victory over Portland State with an injured Achilles before coming back the next night to post four kills and seven digs against Eastern Washington...Voeltz and sophomore Olivia Thomas are fourth (0.38) and fifth (0.37), respectively, in the Big Sky in service aces per game...the Hornets’ match against Hawai’i, orinally scheduled for Nov. 21, has been cancelled...Sacramento State is second in the Big Sky in kills (15.06), but doesn’t have one player ranking among the top 10 in that category...Dwyer’s .600 hitting percentage at Portland State was the third-highest mark (min. 12 kills) in the Big Sky this season.