It was a year of great team and individual performances for Sacramento State athletics.

Sac State won five conference titles this year: Men’s and women’s tennis, women’s indoor and outdoor track and field and men’s soccer. Two athletes took home Big Sky Conference MVP trophies: Men’s tennis junior Kiryl Harbatsiuk and women’s tennis sophomore Tatsiana Kapshai. Junior Lea Wallace earned All-American honors for her indoor track & field performance.

A number of other athletes received weekly conference honors and all-conference team berths.

In the fall sports season, the men’s soccer team won six of its last seven matches to finish first in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, finishing 6-0-1. After capturing the regular season title, the team moved into the playoffs, defeating its two opponents to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.In the tournament, Sac State played Loyola Marymount University in the first round. Sac State scored first in the 27th minute. In the second half, the Gaels scored with 17 minutes left in regulation. The game went into overtime when Sac State sophomore Bryan Barker scored the game-winning goal with an assist from junior Fernando Cabadas.The win was Sac State’s first in NCAA postseason play. The tournament then moved into the second round, where the Hornets faced then sixth-seed UCLA. The Hornets lost to the Bruins, 2-1.

Head coach Michael Linenberger said the team’s arrival in the second round of the NCAA Tournament was a crucial moment in the program’s history.

“It was very significant, as we have never been to the NCAA Tournament before and we proved that we were not satisfied with just participating,” Linenberger said. “We had the desire to advance and make an impact in the tournament.”

Linenberger said his team aims to work hard in the conference and perhaps take another shot at the Division I title.

“Our expectations are to again challenge for the MPSF title and make another run in the NCAA Tournament,” Linenberger said. “We return with the nucleus of our team and we have been working all spring on not being complacent and just being a flash in the pan. We need to show consistency from year to year.”

Bridging the gap between the fall and spring semesters was basketball &- specifically, the women’s basketball team. The team surprised some in the Big Sky Conference by clinching the No. 3 seed in the Big Sky Tournament.

Head coach Jamie Craighead instilled a new offense and defense, which took a little time for the players to get used to. In the end, the system paid dividends when the team won a program-best 15 games, including 10 games in the Big Sky. Once the team did, however, it went on a seven-game winning streak and won 10 of 11 games from Jan. 21 to Feb. 27.

Craighead said the team was firing on all cylinders during that stretch.

“We came together at the right time. Conference is what matters most and in the Big Sky, everyone has a chance to win the championship. I think the way we played, the system we put in place this year, really helped some of our players flourish,” Craighead said. “We play an up-tempo style that allows freedom for the players to succeed. Someone like Ashley Garcia, a senior who had not played much in her time here, was able to play a lot of minutes and do a good job.”

In the first round of the Big Sky Tournament on March 11, the women’s basketball team faced No. 6 Montana State University &- a team that beat Sac State in both previous meetings. This time was no different, as the Bobcats ousted the Hornets from the tournament with an 89-66 defeat.

During the team’s hot streak, the women’s team had two games that resulted in more than 100 points scored. The team accomplished this feat in back-to-back games against the University of Montana and Northern Arizona University. The 104 points against Northern Arizona was the third-highest scoring output for the team since 1993.

Craighead said the 100-point games were a byproduct of how hard the players work for their wins.

“That’s how we play. That’s how we want to play. That’s our style – we want to outscore our opponents. We want them to play fast,” Craighead said. “We believe in the end, we will outscore you because we are in better condition. In the last 10 minutes of the game is when we are going to win it.”

In spring, sports such as softball, baseball, track and field, tennis and golf emerged.

The women’s golf team had a season of high and low finishes during its run for a Big Sky title. The team finished as high as second place and as low as 17th place. However, this did not deter them from competing for a team title in the Big Sky Tournament.

The Hornets found themselves seven strokes behind Portland State University on the final day of the tournament.

Sac State was able to take advantage of some miscues by Northern Arizona on crucial holes to move into second place and put pressure on the Vikings. At the end of the tournament, the Hornets were able to make up five points and finish in second place.

Sac State posted the second-best final score in school history, 902, and the fifth-lowest all-time in conference history. The team holds the record with fewest strokes with 884 in 2007.

Hornet golfer Samantha Saffold, a junior, said the team felt the pressure to win and stepped up when it had to.

“I feel we did what we had to do. We knew going into the final round, that each one of us had to shot the best round we could. Everybody pulled together and did their part,” Saffold said. “Even though most of the team didn’t shoot what they wanted to, it was enough where we could potentially win.”

Sac State’s spring sports wind-down was in June with the end of the track and field and baseball seasons. But crashing pads and helmets in early fall signal the beginning of another school year and the renewed determination to win championships and individual accolades for Sac State athletics.

Matt Harrington can be reached at [email protected]