Still not having a win in Big Sky conference play. The Vandals, coming off four in a row at home traveled to take on the 12-9 Hornets of Sacramento State in the only meeting between the two teams this year. SCSU has won the last eight consecutive matchups, outscoring UI 24 sets to eight.
The Vandals jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the opening set then the Hornets came back with four straight, but UI got the next to tie it at four. SCSU took the lead back, but UI tied it at five and then again at six. A 6-0 run by SCSU followed before Idaho was able to score again. SCSU continued to expand their advantage and eventually won the first set 25-13.
Vandals again grabbed the early 2-0 lead in the second set before SCSU came back with a pair to even it up. UI went on a 6-2 run to go up four but in a matter of no time the Hornets came back with a run of their own eventually tying the set at nine forcing coach Romana to take a timeout. When play resumed SCSU took the lead but then UI got the next five going up four before the Hornets scored four in a row to tie it once again and kill the momentum. It was tied again momentarily at 15 before the Hornets closed out the set on a 10-3 run.
The Hornets turned the tables in the third set and scored first but the Vandals quickly equalized. SCSU tried to keep a two-point cushion, but UI brought it to one multiple times. Eventually the Hornet lead grew to five and a timeout was called by Idaho. SCSU continued to progress from there, but UI wouldn’t give up and crawled to within three at 17-14. The Vandals would not score again as the Hornets obtained the next eight points, completing the sweep. Senior Brigette Smith landed the final kill.
Vandals fall to 1-20 in 2024 and 0-10 in conference play. Six more games to play and they will travel up north to the state of Oregon for their second and final meeting with the Portland State Vikings Saturday evening. PSU won the first matchup in Moscow 3-1 back on September 26. The first serve is ESPN+ is at 5 p.m. The second of their short two-game road stretch before the final home games in the Memorial Gym to follow.
You can reach Jackson Hamelund at [email protected]