SALEM, Ore. – Scheduling early tests to see where the No. 4-ranked Corban University Beach Volleyball program is as a whole was exactly what head coach Dan Stephens shared when asked to highlight his season just a few weeks ago, and the Warriors certainly ran into that competitive opposition that he and his staff feel will help make them a stronger unit moving forward into the NAIA season. The Hornets of NCAA DI Sacramento State University defeated the Navy and Gold 4-1 earlier this afternoon in the Corban Invitational finale, allowing Sac State to stay undefeated in the early stages of the 2024 season.

"We knew we were in for a big challenge today with Sac State, they had us outsized and they are a very talented group," Coach Stephens stated. "We played well and were able to battle them close except for a couple of sets that they ran away with. I saw the team improving throughout the day as they faced a fast-paced game from Sacramento State. This type of challenge is hard to replicate in practice, so it was great to have this opportunity early in the season to work on our game. Our coaching staff is once again very proud of how we competed overall this weekend and how we represented Corban University. What a great showing we had this weekend from our fans, and we thank them for all of their support."

With both the Warriors (2-1) and Hornets (3-0) entering today's matchup with untainted records and perfect 5-0 sweeps of Bushnell University and NCAA DI University of Portland under their belts, the rights to earn the title of "Corban Invitational Champions" was well within grasp. Only two of the sets played this afternoon saw one of the teams fail to reach at least 15 points, resulting in nailbiter results across the sand courts all match long.

Sac State was able to take clean 2-0 sweeps in the top four pairs, with the fifth and final pair resulting in a huge result for the Warriors. Freshmen Kiley Power and Jordan Faircloth put their undefeated record on the line against Sac State's Ashlynn Archer and Hailey Plugge, taking the first set 21-18 before the Hornets responded with a 21-16 victory in set number two to set up a third set tiebreaker.

After falling behind early, Power and Faircloth battled back to take an 8-7 advantage at the side swap, right when the rest of their teammates had head up to court three after watching the end of the top pairs' matchup. Sac State eked ahead ever so slightly following the pause, yet Power and Faircloth were able to flip the script and snag a 15-13 win to salvage the dual and deny the Hornets their third-straight sweep.

Sacramento State 4, No. 4 Corban 1

1. Ellie Tisko/Kalani Hayes (SAC) def. Megan Dennis/Emma Bischoff (CRB) 22-20, 21-18

2. Caitlin Volkmann/Greta Davis (SAC) def. Jessica McMillian/Danae Stokes (CRB) 21-18, 21-14

3. Karlee Soderberg/Mia Guevara (SAC) def. Nicole Bantilan/Emmi Marks (CRB) 21-18, 23-21

4. Tiya Kamba-Griffin/Kate Doorn (SAC) def. Cammie Masanda/Allyson Reid (CRB) 21-15, 21-8

5. Jordan Faircloth/Kiley Power (CRB) def. Ashlynn Archer/Hailey Plugge (SAC) 21-18, 16-21, 15-13

Ext. Abbey Kadillak/Karlie Spohn (SAC) vs. Payton Bazant/Kiley O'Rourke (CRB) tied 21-16, 18-21

With an official conference schedule now in full swing for the Cascade Collegiate Conference, the Warriors will head south next weekend to Ashland for a pair of contests over March 1st and 2nd, starting with the Beacons (2-7) on Friday at 10am.

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