PREVIEW | Thunderbird Volleyball Set to Compete Against Portland State and Sacramento State 

CEDAR CITY, Utah -- After three weeks on the road, the Southern Utah volleyball team returns home this week to face the Vikings of Portland State University and the Hornets of Sacramento State University. 

"The Big Sky rankings are so tight during this time in season," said head coach Pete Hoyer. "Both Portland and Sacramento are good teams and they sit pretty closely to us within standings. It'll be a grind in both matches, but if we play with a fire, we have a very good chance of ending on top."

Last Time Out

The Thunderbirds went 1-1 last week during their road outing. They defeated the Idaho State Bengals 3-2 in five sets and fell 3-1 to the Weber State Wildcats in four sets.

Stacey Hone led the Thunderbirds in scoring over the week, totaling 35 kills. Sarah Gasper tallied 54 digs, 34 of them coming from the Idaho State match. Corrin Peterson dished out 89 assists, 55 of them coming from the Idaho State match. Mckenzie Dowell chipped in four service aces. 

SUU is now 12-12 overall and 5-7 in Big Sky Conference play. Their record puts them in seventh within BSC standings, tied with Portland State. 

Opponent Preview: Portland State Vikings (9-14 Overall, 5-7 BSC)

The Vikings went 1-1 last week after defeating Eastern Washington 3-1 and falling to Idaho 3-1. 

Parker Webb leads the Vikings offensively with 259 kills on the season followed closely by Toni McDougald who posts 257 kills. Caroline Dragani tallies the most assists with 651, averaging 8.24 per set. Ellie Snook sits atop the dig column with 484 digs on the season, averaging 5.44 per set. 

The last time the Thunderbirds played the Hornets was on October 5, 2019 where SUU lost in Portland 3-2. 

Head coach Micheal Seemann is within his thirteenth year with the Hornets. 

Southern Utah will face Portland State on Thursday, November 7, at 6:30 p.m. MT. This match will be the Thunderbirds "Salute to Service" match, sponsored by America First Credit Union. 

Opponent Preview: Sacramento State Hornets (12-13 Overall, 7-5 BSC)

The Hornets of Sacramento State went 1-1 during last week's play as they stayed at home to face Idaho and Eastern Washington. Sacramento defeated Idaho 3-2 last Thursday but fell to Eastern Washington 3-2 on Saturday.

Sarah Davis leads the BSC and her team in kills with 454 on the season, averaging 4.32 kills per set. Setter Ashtin Olin has 967 assists, averaging 9.48 assists per set. Defensively Michelle Taynton leads the Hornets with 325 digs on the season, averaging 3.22 per set. 

Ruben Volta is amidst his twelfth season as head coach of the Hornets. 

The last time SUU saw the Hornets was on October 3, 2019 where the T-Birds topped the Hornets in Sacramento 3-2. 

Southern Utah will face Sacramento on Saturday, November 9, at 1:00 p.m. MT. ThunderKids will receive free admission to this Bulloch Drug sponsored match. 

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