VOLLEYBALL MAKES IT 15 IN A ROW WITH SWEEP OF RIVAL UC DAVIS

10/17/2007

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Senior Jennifer Ferguson had 13 kills and 13 digs, and senior Lindsay Haupt added 12 kills and a team-best .455 hitting percentage to lead Sacramento State to a three-game sweep (30-21, 30-24, 30-26) of UC Davis in a non-conference volleyball match Wednesday evening at the Hornets Nest.

With the victory, the Hornets won their 15th in a row, matching the team’s second longest winning streak in the last 17 years (the longest during that span was a 16-game streak in both 1995 and 2005). Sacramento State, which is currently receiving votes in the CSTV/AVCA top 25 poll, moved its record to 21-3 overall, matching the team’s best mark after 24 competitions during the Div. I era - the 1995 squad was also 21-3. The Hornets moved to the Div. I ranks in 1991.

Sacramento State has not lost a match since Sept. 7, and the Hornets have swept 12 teams during the 15-match winning streak. In addition, the Hornets improved their all-time record against UC Davis to a commanding 48-16. That includes victories in each of the teams’ last 12 meetings dating back to 1993. Each of the last six meetings, and 11 of the 12 victories during the winning streak over UC Davis have resulted in three-game sweeps for the Hornets.

The Hornets hit .294 in the match, with 49 kills and just 14 errors in 119 total attacks. In fact, four Sacramento State players hit better than .385, including Haupt, senior Desiree Hoyum (5 kills, .455), senior Michelle Franz (9 kills, .389) and Ferguson (.387). Ferguson’s 13 kills and 13 digs marked her 15th double-double of the season as the fifth-year senior is currently second in the Big Sky Conference in double-doubles behind teammate Missie Stidham (20).

Sacramento State led from start to finish in both the first two games of the match before UC Davis took its largest lead of the contest at 4-2 early in the third frame. The Aggies hit .228 (47-18-127), but had zero service aces compared to 11 service errors. The Hornets also tallied 7.0 team blocks, including four from junior setter Rose Burke, and three each from Hoyum and Franz.

Three Hornets had double figures in digs, led by Stidham’s 18 to go along with Ferguson’s 13 and freshman Chelsea Goodsell’s 11. Stidham also had eight kills, marking just the fourth time all season she did not record a double-double.

Renee Ibekwe had a team-best 15 kills for UC Davis while Kayla Varney added 12 kills.

A season-high 738 fans attended tonight’s match, marking the sixth 500-plus attendance mark for Hornet matches this season.

Sacramento State has just one remaining non-conference match on the regular-season schedule (Oct. 30 vs. Nevada) as the team jumps back into Big Sky Conference play next week on the road against Northern Colorado (Oct. 25) and Northern Arizona (Oct. 27). Sacramento State currently sits all alone atop the Big Sky standings at the midway point of the conference season with a perfect 8-0 record.