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Nevada
9/3/2026 | 7:00 pm
Sep. 03 (Thu) / 7:00 pm
Nevada
MALIBU, Calif. — Despite a match-high 21 kills from outside hitter Victoria Marthaler, Sacramento State lost at Pepperdine, 3-2 (25-16, 25-16, 20-25, 20-25, 15-12), in the final round of the Asics Classic on Sunday at Firestone Fieldhouse.
The Hornets finished the three-day tournament 0-3, but that doesn’t tell the entire story. Sacramento State had chances to win all three matches against opponents that finished last season between 36th and 44th in the nation in the final RPI rankings.
In fact, Sacramento State took South Dakota State (36th) and Pepperdine (44th) to five sets, and lost in four sets to Villanova (39th). All three opponents finished with at least 20 wins a year ago, and South Dakota State went undefeated in conference play.
Pepperdine, the tournament host, went 3-0 and won the event. Sacramento State, which started two freshmen and a sophomore in every match, played the majority of the tournament without one of its top players to injury (sophomore outside hitter Keonahi’ilani Solaita).
Marthaler’s 21 kills were seven more than any player Pepperdine faced the entire tournament, and she represented the Hornets on the all-tournament team. The junior had at least 13 kills in all three matches, and led the Hornets in kills in each contest.
In today’s matchup, Pepperdine won each of the first two sets in quick fashion, before Sacramento State stormed back to win the next two sets by 25-20 scores. The Hornets finished the match with statistical advantages in kills (57-49), assists (52-45) and digs (50-44). However, Pepperdine had plenty of size and used that to accumulate 17.5 team blocks while limiting Sacramento State to a season-low .143 hitting percentage.
Pepperdine never trailed the entire fifth set, jumping out to a 4-1 lead. Sacramento State would eventually close to within, 14-12 before the Waves put things away.
Joining Marthaler in double-figure kills were sophomore Charlee Lepp (career-high 12) and freshman Nikola Gamlin (season-high 10). Setter Makenna Wiepert posted a double-double for the third straight day, finishing with 39 assists and 16 digs. After transferring from UTSA, Wiepert has double-doubles in each of her first three matches as a Hornet.
Reese Ampi had 12 digs, and both Mia Molnar and Skyler Gartin had four kills and five blocks. Sacramento State finished with eight aces, including two apiece from Marthaler, Eleanor Weeks and Amy Ito.
The Hornets are back in action next week for their home opening tournament. The team will host the three-day Sacramento State Invitational on Thursday-Saturday. Sacramento State will play Thursday vs. Nevada (7 p.m.), Friday vs. Texas Tech (7 p.m.), and Saturday vs. Saint Mary’s (1:30 p.m.). All six matches at the tournament will be streamed on ESPN+.