VOLLEYBALL’S THREE-MATCH WINNING STREAK AGAINST PACIFIC SNAPPED

11/4/2008

STOCKTON, Calif. — Mallori Gibson led all players with 15 kills and Sacramento State was limited to a .098 hitting percentage as the Tigers defeated the Hornets, 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-21) in a non-conference volleyball match Tuesday evening at the Spanos Center.

With the loss, Sacramento State, which was playing its last non-conference match of the season, dropped to 8-18 overall. The Hornets also had their three-match winning streak (dating back to 2004) against Pacific snapped. The Tigers improved their all-time record over Sacramento State to 26-5.

With the victory, Pacific improved to 8-13 overall, including 7-0 on its home floor.

Sacramento State’s largest lead of the night was 3-1 early in the first set as Pacific controlled play throughout the match. The Tigers led the Hornets in nearly every statistical category, including kills (49-28), hitting percentage (.330-.098), digs (41-34) and blocks (8.0-5.0). No Sacramento State players had more than six kills in the match.

The Hornets had no answer for Gibson, who finished with 15 kills and just four errors in 26 attacks (match-high .423 hitting percentage). Gibson led a Pacific trio of players with double digits in kills, including Svenja Engelhardt (14) and Alexa Anderson (11). Tiger libero Dancyne Kama led all players with 15 digs.

For Sacramento State, sophomore Maddison Thivierge and senior Desiree Hoyum each led the team with six kills, while senior Brittany Ferguson had five, and freshman Kelsey Elston four. Thivierge hit a team-best .294 as the middle hitter had just one error in 17 attacks. Senior libero Katie Van Der Wende was the only Hornet with double digits in digs as she finished with 13.

Sacramento State returns to Big Sky Conference play later this week when the team plays at Idaho State (Friday, Nov. 7, 2 p.m. PST) and Weber State (Saturday, Nov. 8, 6 p.m. PST). Tonight marked the first contest of a five-match road trip that will span two weeks.

With just six matches remaining on the regular season schedule, Sacramento State is currently in fourth place in the Big Sky standings with a 6-4 conference record. The top six teams in the nine-member league reach the Big Sky Tournament, which takes place Nov. 28-29 in Portland. The Hornets have never finished anything worse than second in the conference standings.