STIDHAM AND HAUPT COMBINE FOR 39 KILLS IN SWEEP OF NORTHERN ARIZONA

9/21/2007

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Senior Missie Stidham tallied 21 kills and a .636 hitting percentage, and senior Lindsay Haupt added a career-high tying 18 kills to lead Sacramento State to a three-game sweep (30-23, 30-21, 30-23) of Northern Arizona in a Big Sky Conference volleyball match Friday evening at the Hornets Nest.

The match served as the Hornets’ Big Sky opener as the team improved to 12-3 overall and 1-0 in the conference. Sacramento State, which has won each of the last 10 Big Sky regular season and/or tournament titles, has now won six matches in a row and nine of the last 10. In addition, the Hornets have now won 56 consecutive regular season matches against Big Sky competition at home, a streak which dates back to 1999.

With the loss, Northern Arizona dropped to 6-7 overall and 1-2 in the Big Sky.

Fresh off being named the AVCA National Player of the Week, Stidham was remarkable in tonight’s match, totalling 21 kills without an error in 33 attacks. She also had two blocks and 12 digs. Haupt’s 18 kills are a season high and matched her career high, set in 2005 against Pacific. Haupt hit .457 with just two errors in 35 attacks. In fact, the duo of Stidham and Haupt combined to hit .544 with just two errors in 68 attacks. The .636 hitting percentage for Stidham was a season best.

Sacramento State hit .344 as a team, the second best mark of the season. Senior Michelle Franz had six kills and a .417 hitting percentage to round out the three Hornets who hit better than .410. Senior Jennifer Ferguson had 12 kills and six digs, and freshman libero Chelsea Goodsell added a match-high tying 15 digs.

The Hornets had 17 more kills (58-41) and 19 more assists (55-36) than the Lumberjacks. Northern Arizona hit well (.259), but had no answer for Sacramento State’s offensive attack. Kim Babcock led NAU with 17 kills and a .361 hitting percentage as no other Lumberjack had more than seven kills.

The Hornets’ largest deficit of the night was 5-1 early in the third game. However, with the help of four straight points scored on Goodsell’s serve, Sacramento State immediately erased that deficit and cruised the rest of the way.

Sacramento State returns to action tomorrow night for another home match against Northern Colorado at 7 p.m. After tomorrow’s match, the Hornets do not return home again until Oct. 9.