SACRAMENTO, Calif. (September 21, 2023) – Opening Big Sky league play at Sacramento State for the first time since 2003, the Northern Arizona volleyball team dropped its first conference match of the season to the host Hornets in straight sets, 21-25, 15-25, 18-25.
The Lumberjacks struggled to find their offensive rhythm on the night, hitting .027 for the match. Sacramento State, who entered play today leading the Big Sky in blocks, put forth a team total of 14 blocks to keep NAU at bay in the Californian capital.
"We are never satisfied with a loss," head coach Ken Murphy said. "But we had a good week of practice, and this match was a step forward for us. We played good defense and blocked as well as we have this year. I thought we had a tough time killing the ball, and I give Sacramento State credit for defending us well."
Sacramento State flew to a 4-0 lead early in set one, with three of its 13 kills in the opening set coming in the opening four points. The Hornets would go on a 5-0 run to force Murphy's hand in using his first timeout down 13-7.
Down six, the Lumberjacks were not discouraged, reducing the Sacramento State lead to three in two different instances in the latter stages of the set. After a Hornet timeout and a kill from Hanah Stoddard to bring NAU within two 23-21, the home team would record a kill and force an attack error to wrap up the opening set.
Stoddard, who began the day with the seventh most kills in the Big Sky, recorded another dozen in the match, the eighth time this season that she has finished a match with more than 10 kills. Sophomore Keira Hall finished the match with 10 assists and 10 digs, a third double-double in four matches for the sophomore from Scottsdale.
After gaining a quick lead in the opening set, Sacramento State took it to a whole other level in set number two, going on a 10-0 run. Trailing 12-2, Northern Arizona would take the next four points to cut the host's lead in half, but Sacramento State would not relent, striking 20 kills in the second set alone and hitting a match-high .261 heading into the break.
One of the highlights of the night for Northern Arizona came in the second point of set three. Leading 1-0 to start the third, the two teams engaged in an 18-shot rally, and when it looked like Sacramento State would close the point on a kill, a dig from Kylie Moran and a one-handed set from Hall that looked like it was heading out of play.
That was until Sophia Wadsworth, on the run beyond the referee's platform, reached out in an attempt to just get the ball over the net. The ball instead wound up landing cross-court on the line for one of the points of the year. Click here to watch the entire point.
Coming out of the break, it was the Lumberjacks who came out strong down two sets for a third consecutive match, notching six of the first seven points in set three. The momentum did not last long, as Sacramento State would take seven of the next eight points to regain the lead.
Both teams would take turns with the lead in the third set of play, with four tie scores and three lead changes. The last tied score in set three, with the two teams squared at 11, would see the Hornets take the following nine points to all but close out the match.
It will be just one road match for the Lumberjacks this week as Northern Arizona will return home to Rolle Activity Center for its conference home opener, a Saturday night match with the Idaho Vandals. First serve is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.
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