RENO, Nev. – Heather Kirby led all players with 17 kills to lead Cal State Northridge to a 3-2 (22-30, 30-23, 25-30, 30-27, 15-8) victory over the Sacramento State volleyball team in the second and final round of the Nevada Invitational Saturday afternoon at the Virginia Street Gym.The Hornets (7-3 overall), who entered the tournament riding a seven-match winning streak, have now lost two in a row after falling to host Nevada in the first round of the tourney yesterday. Cal State Northridge, which plays Nevada tonight, improved its record to 5-2. Today''s match wrapped up tournament action for Sacramento State as it finished with an 0-2 record.
The Matadors erased a 2-1 deficit in games to beat the Hornets for just the second time in the last 10 meetings between the two teams. After hitting .324 and .303 in games one and two, Sacramento State proceeded to hit .125, .091 and -.077 in games three through five, respectively. The Hornets hit just .180 for the match while Cal State Northridge finished with a .175 mark.
Besides Kirby, Liz Naegle (14 kills) and Jennifer McNees (12 kills and 10 digs) also chipped in for the Matadors.
Four Hornets finished with double-figure kills comprising sophomore Sandra Bandimere (14), senior Loretta Coffman (11), and juniors Kazmiera Imrie (12) and Lisa Beauchene (10). Senior Jayme Wright and junior Olivia Thomas each finished with a team-high 15 digs. Imrie also finished with six digs, a .346 hitting percentage and a team-high six blocks, while Coffman hit .526 (11-1-19) and Beauchene finished with a .429 (10-1-21) mark.
After Sacramento State won game one handily, Cal State Northridge stormed back to take game two. The Hornets held the Matadors to a .000 hitting percentage in the third game as Sacramento State took the 2-1 advantage in games.
The Hornets held a 26-25 lead in game four before Cal State Northridge went on a 5-1 run to close the frame. During that run, Kirby accounted for three of the points with kills.
In game five, the Matadors led from start to finish as the team jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead and never looked back. Northridge, which hit .500 (8-1-14) in the frame, managed to win the game easily despite committing four service errors.
Sacramento State returns to action next week as the team plays at San Jose State on Tuesday, Sept. 17, before taking part in the Fresno State Quadrangular on Friday-Saturday, Sept. 20-21. The Hornets face UNLV on Friday before taking on San Diego and host Fresno State on Saturday.
