The Hornets, who improved to 3-5 and have now won two straight, return to the court for two more matches Saturday against Columbia (10 a.m.) and Loyola Marymount (7:30 p.m.) to wrap up the tournament. Nevada dropped to 1-4 with the loss. Sacramento State is trying to win the tournament title for the second-straight year as the squad posted a 4-0 record at last year’s tournament.

Sacramento State hit a season-high .286 in tonight’s match, as three players with at least five kills hit .500 or better comprised of senior Shannon Arts (13 kills, .545 hitting percentage and four blocks), Haupt (.538 hitting percentage and six blocks) and senior setter Natalie Melcher (five kills, .455 hitting percentage, 50 assists, 12 digs and seven blocks). The 16 kills matched Haupt’s career high as the middle hitter raised her season average to 2.83 kills per game to go along with a .282 hitting percentage.

For Arts, her 13 kills matched a career high as the senior has now posted double figures in kills six times this season and raised her hitting percentage to a team-best .295.

Salaia Salave’a (24), Carly Sorensen (18) and Teal Ericson (15) combined for 57 of the team’s 70 kills, but it was not enough. Salave’a’s 24 kills accompanied a .429 hitting percentage, 15 digs and a team-high tying six blocks.

The match was even throughout, but Sacramento State was able to take advantage of 16.0 team blocks, as sophomore Michelle Franz (eight blocks) led a quartet of Hornets with at least five blocks.

Junior libero Kristin Lutes had a team-high 16 digs for Sacramento State, and has now led the Hornets in that category in every match this season. Joining Lutes with double-figure digs for Sacramento State were Melcher, senior Mallory Hook (11) and junior Atlee Hubbard (10). Hubbard also posted 13 kills, and now leads the Hornets with five double-doubles (kills and digs) this season.

In the early match of the Sacramento State Invitational, Loyola Marymount knocked off Columbia, 3-0 (30-26, 30-23, 30-24). Today’s results and tomorrow’s tournament schedule is listed below.

RECORDS HEADING INTO SATURDAY

Sacramento State (1-0)

Loyola Marymount (1-0)

Nevada (0-1)

Columbia (0-1)

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

Loyola Marymount 3, Columbia 0 (30-26, 30-23, 30-24)

Sacramento State 3, Nevada 1 (30-22, 33-35, 30-27, 30-25)

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

10 a.m. – Sacramento State vs. Columbia

12:30 p.m. – Nevada vs. Loyola Marymount

5 p.m. – Columbia vs. Nevada

7:30 p.m. – Loyola Marymount vs. Sacramento State