CEDAR CITY, Utah - Despite a determined effort and standout performances from key players, Southern Utah University was unable to find its first win of the season, falling to Sacramento State in straight sets (17-25, 17-25, 20-25) on Friday evening at the America First Event Center. The Thunderbirds (0-5, 0-0) showed flashes of offensive power and defensive hustle, but the Hornets' efficiency and depth proved too much across the board.
Southern Utah Standouts
The T-Birds were led offensively by Victoria Zibecchi, who posted a team-high 11 kills on a .310 hitting percentage. Amaya Tobias contributed five kills and several blocks, while Swayzee Mason dished out 12 assists and added a kill of her own.
Defensively, Amanda Mendoza recorded six digs, and Aleeya Jones chipped in with four digs and a service ace. SUU struggled with hitting consistently, finishing the match at .075 as a team with 21 attack errors.
Sacramento State Standouts
Sacramento State delivered a balanced and efficient performance, sweeping Southern Utah behind a dominant showing from Victoria Marthaler, who led all players with 19 kills on .433 hitting. Kate Doorn guided the offense with 26 assists, and Kelsey Heffner and Greta Davis combined for 13 kills on high efficiency. The Hornets hit .319 as a team and controlled the match with strong defense.
Coach Jensen Said
"We've got to start offensively getting out of the negatives. We've had three players in the negatives, and we need to get out of that. We've got to turn on our offense, and that starts in set one. We came out slow, and getting it from set one and switching things up offensively will hopefully put us in a better spot to get a win tomorrow."
Up Next
The Thunderbirds cap off a busy weekend by facing Charleston Southern tomorrow at 1 PM M.T.
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