PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland State women's basketball team has been picked to finish third in both preseason polls it was announced today by the Big Sky Conference office.

The Vikings were tabbed third by both the conference coaches and media, one year after winning the Big Sky Championship and advancing to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history.

Portland State went 18-15 last season and lost to No. 9 Texas A&M in the first round of the "Big Dance" in Seattle. They finished the conference portion of their schedule at 9-7 and tied for fifth before becoming the lowest-seeded team to ever win the Big Sky tournament.

Montana (15-14) was picked as the favorite, followed by Eastern Washington. The Lady Griz finished second last season in the Big Sky at 10-6, while the Eagles (19-11) won the regular season title with a 12-4 record.

The Viks lost two key pieces to graduation in four-time all-league point guard Claire Faucher and forward Erin Yankus, but do welcome back three starters and nine letterwinners. Among the key returnees are seniors Lexi Bishop (G, 5-foot-8), Kelly Marchant  (G, 5-foot-10) and Kelli Valentine (F, 5-foot-11). Five-foot-eight junior guard Eryn Jones also is one of the top players coming back.

Marchant (11.2 ppg), Jones (10.2 ppg) and Valentine (9.0 ppg) were 2-3-4 on the squad in scoring last year, while Bishop averaged 6.2 points and is one of the team's best defenders. Forward Katy Wade, a 6-foot-2 junior, set a school single-season record with 68 blocked shots last year and will anchor the key defensively for Portland State.

Murrell also is expecting big things from sophomore transfer Courtney VanBrocklin, a 5-foot-7 guard who redshirted last year after playing one season at Boise State.

"I'm very excited about the group we have this year," said Murrell, who sports a 63-34 record in three seasons on the Park Blocks. "We have a very talented group of returners who are ready to get back to the NCAA tournament. I'm never disappointed or thrilled on where we are picked in the preseason polls. I'm more concerned on where we are playing at the end of the season. This is a very competitive and well-coached conference. Every night will be a battle."

The Vikings received 52 points and one first-place vote in the coaches poll, while tallying 150 points in the media poll.

Montana State followed PSU in both polls, while Idaho State and Sacramento State tied for fifth in the voting by conference coaches. Rounding out that poll were Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado and Weber State in ninth.

In the the media poll, Sac State edged out Idaho State for the fifth spot, while the final three spots were the same as in the coaches poll.

Montana returns to the top spot in the polls after a one-year hiatus. The Lady Griz had at least tied for the top spot in the coaches poll for nine-straight seasons until Portland State replaced them in the polls last year.

Portland State hosts Western Oregon on Oct. 28, at 7 p.m., in an exhibition contest, before officially opening the year at Washington on Nov. 14.


BIG SKY CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL POLL RESULTS

Coaches Poll
Team                     Points
1. Montana                         61 (5)
2. Eastern Washington   53 (2)
3. Portland State              52 (1)
4. Montana State             48 (1)
T5. Idaho State                  26
T5. Sacramento State     26
7. Northern Arizona        25
8. Northern Colorado     18
9. Weber State                  15

Note: Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team

Media Poll
Team                                     Points
1. Montana                         171 (12)
2. Eastern Washington   159 (6)
3. Portland State              150
4. Montana State             132
5. Sacramento State       102 (3)
6. Idaho State                    84
7. Northern Arizona        66
8. Northern Colorado     48
9. Weber State                  33