California State University at Northridge
1-3,0-0Big West
Sacramento State
1-2,0-0Big Sky
Matadors Fall to Sacramento State in Straight Sets
9/5/2024 8:16:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – CSUN's Amaris Smith and Hailey Brockway combined for 22 kills but the Matador offense was stymied by Sacramento State as the Hornets won in straight sets on Thursday night in the opener of the Sacramento State Invitational at The Nest.
Set scores were 25-20, 25-19, 25-16 as CSUN slips to 1-3 on the season while Sacramento State earns its first win to improve to 1-2.
Smith led all hitters in the match with 12 kills on .194 hitting while Brockway added 10 kills on .167 hitting. Junior opposite Leah Miller chipped in five kills (.067) but the Matadors were limited to a season-low .094 (32-23-96) hitting clip as a team.
The Hornets wound up hitting .226 as a team while also out-blocking the Matadors (7-3) and serving 10 aces to CSUN's five.
SET 1: SAC STATE 25, CSUN 20
With the score knotted at 11-11 in the opening set, a CSUN hitting error sent the Hornets on 6-1 run before a Brockway kill ended the run at 17-12. Another Brockway kill pulled the Matadors within four at 18-14 but the hosts would pull away down the stretch for the 25-20 win.
SET 2: SAC STATE 25, CSUN 19
After neither team hit at a high percentage in the first set, the Hornets connected at a .300 clip to win the second set by the score of 25-19. The set was close in the early going as the teams played to a 7-7 tie. Sac State scored twice before a Hornet service error kept the margin at one (9-8). A Sac State kill would fuel a 6-0 run that put the hosts comfortably in front 15-8. A co-block from Smith and Tatiana Turgeon brought the Matadors back within four at 17-13 before CSUN ultimately trimmed the lead to three at 18-15. The Matadors were also within three at 22-19 when the hosts scored the final three points to open a two-set lead.
SET 3: SAC STATE 25, CSUN 16
CSUN head coach Aqules Montoya would turn to his bench in the final set as Smith and Miller each had four kills but the Matadors were held to a .000 hitting clip in the 25-16 loss. Leading by four at 12-8 following a Smith kill, the Hornets outscored the Matadors 7-4 over the next 11 points to open up an insurmountable 19-12 lead.
NOTES
- Setter Katie Kolar posted 26 assists and four digs and libero Paige Sentes led all players in the match with 17 digs.
- Turgeon hit 1.000 with three kills on three swings.
- CSUN slipped to 29-25 all-time against Sacramento State.
ACCORDING TO COACH AQUILES MONTOYA
"Tough night for us. Sac State is a tough opponent in their gym and our players experienced that. We have to find a way to limit our errors and create opportunities. Once we do that we will compete against some of the best. We'll have to face a very confident and physical San Francisco tomorrow. I look forward to seeing how we rebound."
UP NEXT
CSUN continues the Sacramento State Invitational on Friday as the Matadors take on San Francisco inside The Nest at 4 p.m. The match will stream on ESPN+.
#GoMatadors
