As the sun set on Hornet Pavilion, the Sacramento State Hornets opened their final home stretch of the season against the Montana Griz on a high note, following a farewell to two of the Hornets’ seniors against Montana State.
Feb. 26: Sac State 75, Montana 57
“I’ve been intense,” head coach Aaron Kallhoff said. “I wanted to have a good offensive output, they played from start to finish.”
Before the game started, sophomore forward Brooklyn Taylor sang the national anthem.
After a wave of applause, the Hornets jumped out to an early lead with a deafening crowd at their backs.
Thursday’s game hosted Greek Night, seeing both fraternities and sororities showing up to support the Hornets in emphatic roars throughout the contest.
Every layup, shot, foul and defensive play was followed with passionate cheers, bringing a lively pulse to the Hornet Pavilion.
“They need to come every time,” junior guard Natalie Picton said. “The energy was great, it fed us.”
Picton led the team in points with 24, going 6-11 beyond the arc and tying her own season high that she reached against UC Davis on Nov. 24.
“I feel great,” Picton said. “I think our assists led more than our turnovers. That was amazing.”
Several of Picton’s threes were assisted by redshirt senior guard Benthe Versteeg, who Picton smiled and pointed to after the ball sank through the net. Versteeg also brought the offensive intensity, scoring 21 points with the Sac State’s guards and combining for 45 of the team’s 75 points.
“I felt good. I wanted to provide for the team,” Versteeg said. “I was trying to find my teammates and impact the game in whatever way I can.”
Leading scorer sophomore guard Rubi Gray also reached double digits, scoring 17 against the Lady Griz to electrify the crowd.
When asked who would receive the Iron Hornet belt, Kallhoff had more than one answer for the first time all season.
“The way Natalie Picton and Benthe Versteeg played was pretty tough,” Kallhoff said. “The way they’ve played is how I’ve envisioned when I put them together.”
The 75-57 victory left a high-water mark for the Hornets, who’d turn around in two days for a rematch of a game they wished they could forget.
On Saturday, Feb. 28, they hosted No. 2-seeded Montana State, aiming high for an upset.
“We gotta get locked in on Montana State,” Kallhoff said. “Our first time around, they didn’t see the best version of us.”
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Feb. 28: Montana State 64, Sac State 51
Surprises awaited incoming fans at the Hornet Pavilion as Versteeg’s family handed out gifts honoring the guard on Senior Day.
Commemorating the Netherlands, where Versteeg is from, her family handed out tulips, stroopwafels and keychains with mini clogs attached.
Prior to the game’s start, the Hornets commemorated three seniors including Versteeg, senior forward Fatoumata Jaiteh and director of creative content Jyanne Bautista.
“[Versteeg] has been here the longest. We’ve invested so much with her, and she’s invested so much in us,” associate head coach De’Audra Brown said. “[Jaiteh’s] leadership has been unmatched since she got here. I think she’s somebody that the team looks up to.”
After the introductory ceremony, the players set aside the commemorative decorations for one goal in mind: to compete.
The Hornets fixed their mistakes from their last outing with the Bobcats and reached double digits halfway through the first quarter, something they couldn’t do until the second quarter a few weeks ago.
“A big thing for us was just taking care of the ball, and I think we did a good job of that,” Brown said. “We only had 13 turnovers, definitely a different feel than we had from the last time we played them.”
Coming out of halftime, the Hornets held their sights on slicing the 34-23 deficit in favor of the Bobcats.
Junior forward Keanna Salave’a kept plays alive on offense, snagging rebounds for second-chance plays that led the Hornets on a 6-0 run.
The Bobcats regained control of the lead with threes, shooting 35% from deep as a team. They couldn’t hold on to their gained lead late, shooting just 52% from the line and failing to capitalize on Hornet foul trouble.
Though the Hornets cut the margin to two in the fourth quarter, Montana State crashed the boards and dominated the paint, closing the game out with a score of 61-54.
For Jaiteh and Versteeg, walking off the court carried a heavier weight than a typical loss.
“This is a melting pot of all the years we’ve put into college basketball,” Jaiteh said. “I believe in God, and I feel like this is where I’m meant to be, with all these great people around me.”
Both seniors shared the same sentiment; their time in the green and gold will never be forgotten.
“I love the environment, and I love everything about Sacramento,” Versteeg said. “I’m so grateful for everybody.”
Wrapping up their final homestand of the season, the Hornets pivot to their final game on the road against Idaho State on Monday, March 2 at 6 p.m.
“The competitiveness and IQ that both [Versteeg and Jaiteh] have will definitely be missed,” Brown said.
