Fresh off three victories last week, the Sacramento State volleyball team (21-9, 10-2 Big Sky Conference) enters the final week of the regular season with the chance to win its sixth-consecutive regular-season conference title. If the Hornets win at first-place Eastern Washington (11-1 Big Sky) on Friday, Nov. 15, and at Portland State (3-9 Big Sky) on Saturday, Nov. 16, the team will claim the regular season title and host the Big Sky Tournament (Nov. 21-23).

Should the Hornets defeat Eastern Washington and both teams finish with identical 12-2 records, Sacramento State would hold the tiebreaker by virtue of its head-to-head victories over the Eagles (the Hornets beat EWU, 3-0, in Sacramento on Oct. 19). The Hornets would then host the conference tournament for the sixth-consecutive year. No team in Big Sky history has ever won six-consecutive regular season championships.

Should the Hornets lose to Eastern Washington, the Eagles would host the tournament for the first time since 1989. With its victory over Montana State (9-4) last Saturday, Sacramento State needs just one more win to assure itself of at least a second place finish and the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. The Hornets have finished at least second in the conference standings every year since joining the Big Sky in 1996.

Eastern Washington, which is currently ranked 15th in the USA Today/AVCA top 25 poll, enters the week with a 26-1 overall record. The Eagles defeated Idaho State and Weber State on the road last week, and have yet to lose at home this season (7-0). The Hornets are 3-3 in Cheney, Wash., since joining the conference, including a 3-0 victory last year. Sacramento State has won each of the last three regular-season meetings between the two teams, but Eastern Washington defeated the Hornets in the Big Sky Tournament championship match last year. The Eagles currently lead the conference in hitting percentage, kills, assists and service aces.

Eastern Washington''s only loss of the season came to the Hornets as the team has lost just 15 games all season long. The Eagles opened the season by winning their first 20 matches.

Portland State enters the week with a 9-12 overall record and a 3-9 mark in the Big Sky. The Vikings currently hold the sixth and final playoff spot for the conference tournament as the team is a half game in front to Montana (3-10). Portland State has not advanced to the tournament since 1997. In fact, the team has recorded for just three conference wins from 1998-2001. The Vikings, who are coming off a victory at Idaho State last Saturday, host Northern Arizona on Friday before welcoming the Hornets on Saturday.

A Look At Last Week

The Hornets finished the week with a 3-0 record, defeating Saint Mary''s (30-23, 30-18, 30-23), Montana (30-27, 30-23, 33-31) and Montana State (30-19, 30-21, 27-30, 30-22) in Hornet Gym. With the victories, Sacramento State finished the regular season with a 10-1 record and a 7-0 mark against conference competition at home. The Hornets are now 90-17 at home since 1995 and have won 26-consecutive regular-season matches against conference competition inside Hornet Gym. At home, the Hornets are now a combined 26-4 all-time against Saint Mary''s (11-1), Montana State (10-1) and Montana (5-2).

Head Coach Debby Colberg

For the 27th-straight season, Debby Colberg will control the Hornet sidelines. During her tenure, Colberg has posted a 692-247 record (.737 winning percentage) and has led the team to 13 league titles and 21 postseason berths. Her 692 wins ranks seventh on the all-time NCAA list among coaches with at least five years of Div. I experience. Last season, Colberg was named Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year for the fourth time in the last five years. During her tenure, she has been honored as coach of the year seven times and Region Coach of the Year on four occasions. She is just eight wins shy of 700 for her career, a feat only five active Div. I coaches have achieved.

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 25.8 wins per year.

The Hornets have posted a 272-129 record (.678 winning percentage) since moving to Div. I in 1991. In addition to leading the Hornets to four NCAA Tournament appearances over the last five years, she also had the added responsibility of serving as the school’s athletic director from February of 1999 until June of 2002.

Scenarios For Big Sky Championship

Listed below are the scenarios for Eastern Washington or Sacramento State winning the Big Sky regular season championship. The Eagles host the Hornets on Friday and Northern Arizona on Saturday. After playing Eastern Washington on Friday, Sacramento State travels to Portland State on Saturday. Both EWU and the Hornets have clinched at least second place in the conference standings.

Sacramento State wins the regular season championship if:

1. The Hornets beat both Eastern Washington and Portland State.

2. Sacramento State beats Eastern Washington and loses to Portland State on Saturday while the Eagles lose to Northern Arizona.

Eastern Washington wins the regular season championship if:

1. Eastern Washington defeats Sacramento State.

2. Sacramento State defeats Eastern Washington on Friday, but loses to Portland State on Saturday while Eastern Washington beats Northern Arizona.

Conference Dominance

Since joining the Big Sky in 1996, Sacramento State has posted the best conference winning percentage of the league’s eight teams. The Hornets are 87-19 (.821), followed by Eastern Washington (78-28), Montana State (66-41) and Northern Arizona (64-42) as the schools with winning league records. Weber State (47-60), Montana (36-71), Idaho State (27-80) and Portland State (16-90) round out the rest of the field.

Wilson Has Career Week

Sophomore Emily Wilson had arguably the best week of her career last week as the middle hitter helped lead Sacramento State to a 3-0 record. The Vacaville, Calif., native combined for 34 kills (3.40 per game), 21 total blocks (2.10 per game) and a .371 hitting percentage. Wilson committed just eight errors in 70 total attacks while recording single-match career highs in kills (19) and blocks (11) during the week.

In the Hornets’ three-game victory over Montana, Wilson led all players with 19 kills to go along with a .441 percentage and three blocks. The sophomore committed just four error in 34 total attacks and finished the match with an average of 6.33 kills per game. In Saturday’s win over Montana State, Wilson led all players with 11 total blocks while also adding 11 kills. The 11 blocks was the seventh-best mark in school history and the most since Tasman Dwyer had 12 against Santa Clara on Sept. 12, 2000. She also hit .292 in the match, committing just four errors in 24 total attacks. Against Saint Mary’s, Wilson had four kills, a .333 hitting percentage (4-0-12) and a match-high seven blocks.

So Much For a Rebuilding Year

Before the season began, head coach Debby Colberg stressed that this year could be a rebuilding one with seven underclassmen on the roster, and only three seniors. Now that the Hornets are second in the Big Sky and could win their sixth-consecutive Big Sky championship this week, Colberg may have underestimated her team a bit. The youngsters have stepped up in a big way, including the team''s four underclassmen starters: Sophomore outside hitter Sandra Bandimere (first on the team with 359 kills), sophomore middle hitter Emily Wilson (second on the team and fourth in the Big Sky with 1.15 blocks per game), freshman libero Mallory Hook (third on the team with 2.63 digs per game, including a career-high tying 23 digs against Montana State) and freshman middle hitter Shannon Arts (third on the team with 0.95 blocks per game).

First Game Is The Charm

With victories over Saint Mary''s, Montana and Montana State, the Hornets are now 19-2 when winning the first game of a match this season. The team''s only losses when winning the first game took place at 12th-ranked Santa Clara and in Reno, Nev., where the Hornets fell in five to Cal State Northridge. Conversely, when Sacramento State drops the first game, the team''s record in those matches is 2-7.

Smoking From The Outside

Outside hitters Jayme Wright (3.38 kills per game) and Sandra Bandimere (3.36 kills per game) have combined to account for nearly half (44.4 percent) of the team''s total offense (15.17 kills per game) and rank eighth and 10th, respectively, in the Big Sky in kills. Bandimere leads the team with 359 kills while Wright has posted 351. Bandimere leads the team with 20 matches in which she''s recorded double-digit kills while Wright has accomplished the feat 19 times.

Wright has led or tied for the team lead in kills in 14 matches while Bandimere has done it 12 times. At least one of the two has recorded double-figure kills in all but four matches this season (Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Nevada, San Diego and Weber State).

Wright, who has started 81-consecutive matches over the last three years, became the eighth player in Sacramento State history to surpass the 1,000-kill plateau earlier this season and currently has 1,194 career kills and 1,255 career digs. Those numbers rank her seventh and ninth, respectively, all-time at Sacramento State. A second team all-Big Sky selection last season, the team''s only four-year senior tallied her 40th career double-double (kills and digs) last week and currently has a team-best 13 this year.

Bandimere, who played sparingly last season as a freshman, has recorded double figures in kills in 19 of her last 23 matches. The Roseville, Calif., native is averaging 3.64 kills per game over that span, including a career-high and conference season-high 27 kills at Montana. Bandimere (359), Wright (351) and junior Kazmiera Imrie (301) became the first Hornet trio to surpass the 300-kill plateau since Tasman Dwyer (424), Sarah Chlebana (349) and Wright (347) accomplished the feat during the 2000 season.

Other Notables

Junior setter Lisa Beauchene also shined last week, combining for a .419 hitting percentage to go along with 2.10 kills, 12.90 assists, 3.80 digs and 0.70 blocks per game.