After last weekend’s success in being named the K-State Invitational winners, the Wildcats came into this weekend with the same mentality. The purple and white took Cal State Northridge in three straight sets, 28-26, 25-18 and 25-23.

Fuka Sekita had quite the night, accumulating 24 digs throughout her performance Friday night. Sekita broke a school record for the most digs in a three-set match during the rally-scoring era, surpassing Angie Lastra’s 23 digs on Oct. 13, 2007, at Iowa State.

“I’m so happy to break the record, but it’s definitely not only my thing, especially the last set,” Sekita said. “The blockers did a really great job, so that’s why I can see the ball clearly and easily. … I want everybody to think that this record is a team thing because I cannot have done this by myself. … This is my first time having a record, so I’m just so happy. But I’m not done. I want to keep pushing myself and go for more.”

Starting off the first set strong, K-State jumped out to a 4-0 run against the Matadors, including three kills from three different Wildcats — Skylar Brady, Cadence Lundgren and Emerson Van Lannen.

Not content with the start, CSUN came back with their own rally and tied the game 4-4. With each team fighting for the lead, the Matadors went on a three-point run and pulled ahead for a brief moment, 16-15.

A Regan Fox kill allowed the Wildcats to tie it at 17 before going on another 4-0 run, pushing their lead to 20-17. After a stuffed block by Ellah Derrer, the Matadors took a timeout in hopes of throwing the K-State offense out of sync.

The Matadors came out of the timeout equipped, making a run before Sydney Maue tallied a kill to tie it 24-24. A thrilling match point continued as the two teams went back and forth, keeping it tied or within one. CSUN saw a glimpse of winning set one after a K-State service error tied the game again at 26. But the light would fade as the Wildcats focused in with two kills — from the duo of Fox and Massey — to win the set 28-26.

K-State came out aggressive at the net, which head coach Jason Mansfield said he was proud of, despite some errors.

“The first set, we had 23 kills; that’s kind of unheard of,” Mansfield said. “But we made 11 hitting errors, and that’s why it was 28-26. So just think overall, our offense has a chance to be really special.”

Fired up to win the second set, the Matadors went on a 7-0 run, forcing K-State to take a timeout. The Wildcats, however, decided to change the script and go on a six-point run before CSUN took a timeout to disrupt the purple and white’s rhythm. Throughout the six-point stretch, three of those points came from Van Lannen aces.

“We work a lot with our sports psychologists on things like mindset,” Van Lannen said. “So, I think when we’re in those tough situations, everybody wants the ball. Nobody’s afraid of it. Everyone’s like, ‘Give me the ball. I want this kill. Give me the ball. Serve it to me.’ And I think that we’re super confident in that way.”

The Matadors tried to make runs but weren’t successful with K-State’s powerhouse swings at the net. After the score tied at seven and again at eight, the Wildcats took the lead and stayed in front for the remainder of the set. K-State took advantage of a CSUN service error, getting possession and finishing the set 25-18 thanks to a Massey ace.

Set three was another close match with both teams going point-for-point multiple times. The Wildcats allowed the Matadors to take the lead at the beginning of the set before an Avery Stones kill tied the game at nine.

CSUN fought back, tying the game at 13 and staying within reach of K-State. As the end of the battle closed in, intensity grew as the Matadors prevented the Wildcats from clinching match point before Massey finished it off with a kill.

As a team, K-State had 52 kills compared to CSUN’s 32 on the night, along with a .214 hitting percentage. Wildcat standouts at the net included Massey with 16 kills followed by Fox with nine and two ‘Cats — Stones and Lundgren — having a combined 14 kills. Running the court at setter, Stucky had 13 assists on the night along with three digs.

The Wildcats look to continue their winning streak as they match up against Drake at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 6, to wrap up the Wildcat Classic.