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Growth.

That's the first word that comes to mind when Portland State head volleyball coach Michael Seemann looks back on his team's 2011 season. With a roster loaded with underclassmen, including six freshmen, the Vikings struggled early, but continually progressed as the year went along to the point where they were playing for an NCAA tournament berth. Seemann said it all boils down to his young squad growing up.

“Looking at the whole season, there was a tremendous amount of growth, both physically and intellectually in terms of the amount of mental and physical effort that needs to go into your daily routine,” said Seemann, who is 101-47 in five seasons at Portland State. “As a team, I felt like we grew to trust each other. I knew coming in to this year that we had a lot of growth to incur and we did.”

The season started off on the right foot as the Vikings won four of their first five matches. But a jump up in competition over the next few weeks resulted in eight straight losses and the team was struggling to find a consistent lineup heading into Big Sky Conference action. Somewhere early in league play, though, the Vikings found their rhythm.

Seemann points to a home win over previously unbeaten Northern Arizona on Sept. 30 as to when he thinks his young team started to click. The Lumberjacks entered the night 12-0, but the Vikings earned a convincing 3-1 victory.

“There was a shift in mentality after beating NAU at home,” said Seemann. “I think the girls just started to connect. The way we approached that match in terms of preparation and in real time showed that the young kids were maturing. Statistically we got it done with a lot of blocking and I think that helped us establish our identity.”

After their win over NAU, the Vikings were dealt a tough five-set loss to eventual regular season champion Northern Colorado. But by then, they had settled on a lineup and players were becoming accustomed to their roles.

“We found a good working group that weekend that consistently earned their starts in practice. By then, our core group of Garyn (Schlatter), Megan (Ellis), Domi (Kristinikova) and Nicole (Bateham) were holding down their spots and that allowed us to look at other options like Cheyne (Corrado) and Tineke (Bierma),” said Seemann.

As they have done every year under Seemann, the Vikings chalked up victory after victory over the final weeks of the season. After being 4-9 at one point, they closed by winning 14 of their final 18 and finished second in the final Big Sky standings.

After winning last season's regular season title, PSU hosted this year's league tournament. As the second seed, they faced third seeded Sacramento State in the semis. The Vikings lost the opening set, but rebounded to win the next three, setting up a showdown with Northern Colorado.

The Bears proved to be too much in the championship match, though, winning the Big Sky title in straight sets.

“Northern Colorado earned the right to represent the conference in the NCAA tournament,” said Seemann, who took the Vikings to the NCAAs in 2008 and 2010. “They probably played one of their best matches of the year, as they should have cause they were peaking at that point. We necessarily didn't come close to our potential in that match, especially at that point in the season.”

The Vikings had their four-year run of Big Sky titles come to an end and their string of six-straight 20-win seasons was also snapped as they finished with an 18-13 mark. But with just three upperclassmen playing major minutes, growing pains were to be expected.

Ellis, Kristinikova and Bateham performed just as upperclassmen should, while five of the six freshmen played major roles this year.

Bateham was the lone senior and Seemann says she set the tone day-in and day-out for the entire team. He said her daily routine and the way she prepared rubbed off on the younger players.

“She was a great ambassador for Portland State and for our younger kids. Her work ethic and attitude is something we are going to miss for sure.”

Bateham played one of her finest matches as a Viking in the Big Sky tournament final against Northern Colorado, tallying 16 digs with no receive errors to earn all-tourney honors.

Ellis might have had the hardest role to play of any player on the roster. With the graduation of Big Sky MVP Whitney Phillips, the junior became the Vikings' go-to hitter on the outside.

“That's not a position you can be groomed for easily,” said Seemann, “you have to experience it. When her time came, she established herself as a very solid attacker.”

Ellis experienced some ups and downs, but was firing on all cylinders by the end of the year and finished second in the Big Sky in kills per set to earn first team All-Big Sky Conference honors.

Among the freshmen, middle blockers Katie O'Brien and Leigh-Ann Haataja had the most consistent impact throughout the season.

O'Brien, who was an honorable mention All-Big Sky pick, led the league in blocking and her 147 total blocks are the second most ever in a season during PSU's NCAA Division I era (1996-present). She also ranked third in the conference with a .291 hitting percentage. Haataja, meanwhile, ranked third in blocking and 10th in hitting percentage.

Corrado was becoming an impact player on the outside midway through the year until she was sidelined for the final weeks of the season by a foot injury. That thrust Bierma into a bigger role and she responded with several big performances during Big Sky play.

Fellow frosh Kasimira Clark also showed signs of greatness, appearing in all 31 matches. She will head into next year as the presumed starter at the libero position.

A pair of sophomores – Schlatter and Aubrey Mitchell – also had outstanding seasons.

As the setter, Schlatter is the Vikings' floor leader and it's a role she excels in. Despite ranking sixth among all setters in assists per set, she was voted to the All-Big Sky first team because she impacts the game in a variety of ways and teams have to plan their strategies around her.

Mitchell had a breakout year in every way possible on her way to earning honorable mention all-conference honors. She developed into a reliable attacker from the right pin, finishing second on the team in kills per set, while also establishing herself as a formidable blocker.

While in the end they fell one victory short another Big Sky title, there were plenty of positives to be taken from the season. And, with 12 players returning, the future looks very bright.

“Yes, we were disappointed that we didn't win (another title), but at the same time we are very pleased and impressed with the fact that we gave ourselves the opportunity to play for the championship as the second seed,” said Seemann. “We don't have a bitter taste left, nor will we use it as incentive. Our goals and our path is clear every single year in this program. Everyone on this team chose this program because of its championship tradition and we plan to continue to compete for the title going forward.”


2011 SEASON NOTES

THE BIGGEST IN THE SKY: With their victory over Northern Arizona on Nov. 5, Portland State reached the 10-win barrier in Big Sky play for the seventh straight season, becoming the only team to do so. Since 2005, PSU is a conference best 88-22 in league matches, and they have never finished lower than second place in the final standings. Additionally, PSU has won the regular season crown in 2007, 2009 and 2010, and the tournament title in 2008 and 2010.

PORTLAND STATE'S BIG SKY TOURNEY HISTORY: Portland State made its 10th-straight appearance in the Big Sky tournament and served as the host institution for the third time in the past four years. They are 8-8 all-time and 7-3 in four trips under Michael Seemann. PSU has played in the championship match each of the past five years, winning the title in 2008 and 2010 on its home floor. The Vikings finally lost a tournament match on their home court – in this year's title match against Northern Colorado – and are 5-1 at the Stott Center.

BATEHAM EARNS FINAL BIG SKY PLAYER OF THE WEEK OF 2011: In her final regular season home match, senior DS/L Nicole Bateham put together one of her finest performances in a Viking uniform and was rewarded on Nov. 21 by being named the final Big Sky Conference Player of the Week of 2011. Honored prior to first serve against Sac State on Nov. 19, Bateham racked up an impressive 28 digs for a 9.33 digs per set average, in helping PSU sweep the Hornets and nail down second place in the final league standings. The 28 digs were the most in a three-set match by any player in the Big Sky in over three years (Brittany Stowers, NAU, 28 digs, Oct. 25, 2008). Bateham was the lone Viking to earn POTW honors in 2011.

SEEMANN EARNS 100TH-CAREER VICTORY: Fifth-year Head Coach Michael Seemann earned the 100th victory of his career when Portland State swept Sacramento State on Nov. 19. At 101-47, Seemann has the best record of any coach in the Big Sky over the past five seasons. His 64-16 league record is also the best of any Big Sky coach.

BACK TO THEIR WINNING WAYS: With six freshmen on the roster and three starters lost from last year's NCAA tourney team, Portland State experienced some growing pains this season. Four freshmen played major minutes early on and a fifth – Tineke Bierma – saw her role increase the final weeks after fellow frosh Cheyne Corrado went down with an injury. PSU started the year 4-1, but then lost eight in a row. After that, though, they won 14 of their final 18 matches (and 10 of their last 12) and twice had five-match winning streaks. The Vikings' win at Idaho State on Oct. 22 evened their record at 11-11 and put them at .500 for the first time since Sept. 3. Their hitting and blocking numbers were much improved over their final 18 matches as they had a .215 percentage and averaged 2.90 bps. Through the first 13 contests, when they were 4-9, PSU hit .146 and averaged 2.33 bps.

FINISHING STRONG: A staple of Michael Seemann's teams over the past five seasons have been strong finishes. In 2007, PSU closed by going 16-4. In 2008, they finished 8-3. In 2009, they won 15 of their final 17. In 2010, they were 19-3 over their final 22 matches. And this season, the Vikings closed on a 14-4 run. In the months of October and November that last five seasons, PSU is 53-18.

STIFF COMPETITION: Of the Vikings' 13 losses this season, only four came against teams that had losing records and four were to NCAA tournament teams. Each of their final five defeats of 2011 came against teams that were .500 or better. The nine teams that PSU lost to that finished with non-losing records combined to go 133-84 (.613), with Northern Colorado, Oregon and Washington all reaching the NCAAs.

SUCCESS ON THE ROAD: With their 3-1 win at Eastern Washington on Nov. 12, the Vikings finished their Big Sky road slate at 6-2 for the fourth time in the past six years. They also had that record in 2006, 2009 and 2010. In 2007 and 2008, PSU went 5-3 on the road. Overall since 2006, PSU is 34-14 in Big Sky road matches, after going just 9-66 in their first 10 seasons as a league member.

SEEING DOUBLE: Six different Viking players recorded double-doubles this season and PSU finished with a total of 35, which was the third most in the Big Sky. Megan Ellis led the team and was fourth in the league with 14, Garyn Schlatter had 13 to tie for fifth, while Cheyne Corrado (3), Dominika Kristinikova (3), Aubrey Mitchell (1) and Katie O'Brien (1) had the other double-doubles.

RARE DOUBLE-DOUBLES: Only three players in the Big Sky pulled off the rare double-double of 10-plus kills and 10-plus blocks, and Portland State had two of them. Idaho State's Vanessa Muir was the first to accomplish it on Oct. 15 against UNC, with 10 kills and 10 blocks. PSU's Aubrey Mitchell did in seven nights later at Idaho State with 18 kills and 10 blocks. Then on Nov. 5, Katie O'Brien tallied 12 kills and 11 blocks for PSU in their victory at Northern Arizona. Before Mitchell did it, the last Viking to pull it off was Erica Jepsen on Nov. 1, 2007, at Northern Colorado.

THE KEY TO A “W”: Over the past five seasons under Michael Seemann there has been one glaring key to a Portland State victory – winning the hitting percentage battle. The Vikings were 17-0 this season when outhitting their opponent and are 98-6 (.942) since 2007. When they get outhit, PSU is 3-40, including 1-13 this season. In Seemann's first year, the Vikings went 2-6 when getting outhit. They were 0-22 over the next three seasons, then were 0-9 this year until Sept. 24, at Montana State. The Bobcats outhit the Viks, but Portland State earned a 3-2 victory.

BLOCK PARTY IN POCATELLO: Led by the efforts of Katie O'Brien (13) and Aubrey Mitchell (10), Portland State racked up a season-high 19 blocks at Idaho State on Oct. 22. Garyn Schlatter chipped in six and Leigh-Ann Haataja had five as the Vikings tallied their most blocks since recording 34 at Sacramento State on Oct. 12, 2007. The Vikings also had two players go over the 10-block mark in the same match since that night in '07 in Sacramento. That evening, Michelle Segun tallied 21 blocks and Erica Jepsen registered 13.

INJURY BUG BITES THE VIKINGS: The injury bug struck the Vikings at a critical time toward the start of Big Sky play. Just when she was starting to become an impact player on the outside, freshman Cheyne Corrado suffered a foot injury that sidelined her for much of the final part of the year. She missed 11 consecutive matches before playing against Northern Colorado in the conference tournament. Corrado had a “breakout” match against Northern Arizona on Sept. 30 according to Head Coach Michael Seemann. She led the team with 17 kills, while also tallying 18 digs and hitting .308. It's safe to say she had a breakout weekend as she also had a double-double the next night vs. Northern Colorado with 13 kills and 20 digs. She hit a career-best .324 in the match. For the weekend, Corrado averaged team-highs of 3.33 kps, 4.22 dps and 3.56 pps, while hitting .316. She went on to lead PSU in kills against Sac State on Oct. 7, and raised her kills per set average from 1.60 to 1.91, and from 1.94 to 2.43 in league action.

A NEW FORCE ON THE OUTSIDE: With the graduation of Big Sky MVP Whitney Phillips, the Vikings came into the 2011 season knowing they needed to find a new weapon on the outside. Junior OH Megan Ellis stepped up to lead the way this season, averaging 3.50 kps, which ranked second in the Big Sky. Ellis was the lone Viking named to the El Paso Sports Commission Volleyball All-Invitational Team during the opening weekend after averaging 4.42 kps, 4.63 pps and 3.00 dps. Ellis hit .284 over the four matches, went over the 10-kill mark three times and recorded a pair of double-doubles. For the season, Ellis led the team in kills 24 times and was the only Viking to tally at least 20 kills in a match, doing so three times.

SENIOR LEADERSHIP: DS/L Nicole Bateham was the lone senior on the squad this year and not only was she counted on to provide solid leadership, but she also needed to set the tone in the backrow. Bateham finished sixth in the Big Sky in digs per set (4.59) and led PSU in that category 25 times. Additionally, she registered double-digits in digs in 29 of 31 matches. Bateham was a big part of PSU finishing 2011 on a 14-4 run as she averaged 5.07 dps over that span, after averaging 3.92 dps over the first 13 matches. Including her redshirt season in '07, Bateham saw PSU win 101 matches, three Big Sky titles and make two trips to the NCAA tournament. She ranks third all-time on the Park Blocks in digs during PSU's NCAA DI era (1996-present), and 10th overall.

DIGGING HER WAY INTO THE RECORD BOOK: Senior DS/L Nicole Bateham went over the 1,000-dig mark for her career on Nov. 3 at Northern Colorado. Early in the year, Bateham joined the PSU career NCAA DI era top 10 for digs in the match against New Mexico on Sept. 10. She concludes her career with 1,135 digs, which is third all-time in PSU's DI era and 10th overall. Her 532 digs this season gives her the second-best single season total ever on the Park Blocks, while her career 3.69 dps average is the fourth-best mark since 1996. The 532 digs are also good for 17th all-time on the Big Sky single season charts.

PASSING UP HER COACH: Halfway through this season, Vikings sophomore setter Garyn Schlatter passed up assistant coach Katie Kaysinger for fifth place in the PSU DI era record book for assists. Schlatter moved into the fifth spot against Northern Colorado on Oct. 1, sliding past Kaysinger, who tallied 1,561 assists as a part-time setter for PSU from 1998-2001. On Oct. 22, at Idaho State, Schlatter moved into fourth place. She now has 2,010 assists in her career to rank ninth all-time. Additionally, her 8.59 assists per set average is the fourth best total since 1996.

SO MUCH MORE THAN A SETTER: Take one look at the final Big Sky assists rankings and you'll notice that Garyn Schlatter was sixth, averaging 8.32 aps. Not very impressive, one might think. But, Schlatter was much more than a setter for the Vikings, also spending time on the outside while Dominika Kristinikova served as the setter. Schaltter is one of the best all-around players in the league and that is evidenced by looking at her other numbers. She led all setters in kills per set (1.60), blocks per set (0.80) and points per set (2.23). And while she was sixth in hitting percentage (.207), she also took over 230 more attempts than any other setter. Another factor to look at is the impact she has at the net on the defensive end. Her 93 blocks this year are the most ever by a Portland State setter, while her 74 her freshman season is the fourth-best total. Only one other player – Michelle Buckner with 87 in 1995 and 76 in 1994 – in Viking history has ever tallied 70 or more blocks from the setter spot.

TRIPLE-SIZED: Garyn Schlatter posted PSU's first triple-double since Nov. 17, 2007, when she racked up 48 assists, 15 digs and 11 kills vs. Northern Colorado on Oct. 15, 2010. The last Viking to accomplish the feat was Nique Fradella, against Sac State. It was also the first triple-double by a Big Sky player since NAU's Kelli Dallman did it on Nov. 21, 2009. In two other matches during 2010, vs. Sac State on Oct. 2 and vs. Montana on Oct. 29, she fell one dig shy of a triple-double. This season, Schlatter came close to a triple-double three times. On Sept. 10 vs. UC Irvine, she had 15 kills, 19 digs and seven assists. Then on Sept. 16 against Idaho State, she tallied 12 kills, 25 assists and eight digs. Finally, at Idaho State on Oct. 22, Schlatter had 46 assists, 13 digs and nine kills.

THE LEFTY BREAKS OUT: Portland State sophomore Aubrey Mitchell had a stellar second season on the Park Blocks, developing into a solid player on the right pin on her way to being named an honorable mention all-league selection. A lefty, Mitchell played the finest match of her career on Oct. 22 at Idaho State, racking up career-highs of 18 kills and 10 blocks. She also hit .577 (18-3-26), the second best mark of her career. She easily surpassed her previous highs of 11 kills and five blocks. After the match, PSU Head Coach Michael Seemann said Mitchell 'blew up' against the Bengals. Over the final 18 matches, Mitchell tallied at least 10 kills eight times, posting an average of 2.57 kps with a .224 hitting mark. She also averaged 1.09 bps over that span. Prior to that, Mitchell was averaging 1.73 kps, 0.58 bps and hitting .197.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT: Freshman MB Katie O'Brien may have been a late NLI signee in April, but she undoubtedly had the biggest impact of the six freshmen that Michael Seemann signed. O'Brien hit .579 during the season-opening tourney in El Paso, hitting over .300 in all four matches and actually hitting .500 or better in three of the contests. O'Brien, who was named honorable mention all-conference, led the Big Sky in blocking (1.35 bps) and ranked third in hitting percentage (.291). In Big Sky matches, she averaged a remarkable 1.48 bps and hit at a .322 clip. On the national scene she ranks 23rd in blocking (as of Dec. 11). Finally, her 147 blocks and 123 block assists are the second most in a single season at PSU during their DI era, and her 1.35 bps average is the third-highest total since 1996.

SOLO STOPS: Of Katie O'Brien's Big Sky-leading 147 blocks, 24 of them were solo stops, which also led the league. That number is the fifth-best in a single season at PSU during their DI era and are the most by a PSU freshman since Jessica Vanzant had 23 in 2003.

HOT IN THE MIDDLE: Just like fellow frosh MB Katie O'Brien, Leigh-Ann Haataja (Hot-E-uh) had a big impact in her first season. Haataja finished the year strong and ranked third in the Big Sky, and 77th nationally (as of Dec. 11), in blocks per set (1.12). In league only matches, she ranked sixth in blocking (1.09 bps). Haataja also provided solid attacking from the middle, hitting .249 to rank 10th in the league. Two of her most impressive performances of the year both come against Seattle. On Aug. 31, she recorded nine kills, a .400 hitting percentage and 10 blocks to help PSU rally from two down for the 3-2 victory. Then on Nov. 10, Haataja hit .778 (7-0-9) with five blocks in a sweep of the Redhawks.

NET STUFFERS, PART ONE: Freshmen middle blockers Leigh-Ann Haataja and Katie O'Brien both recorded 10 blocks in a match this season. Haataja was the first do it against Seattle on Aug. 31. Her 10 blocks were the most by a Viking since Erica Jepsen had 12 on Aug. 29, 2009 at New Mexico, and the most by a freshman since 2006. Jepsen was also the last frosh to have over 10 blocks, tallying 11 at Gonzaga on Sept. 2, 2006. O'Brien joined the elite company by registering 10 block assists against UC Irvine on Sept. 10. Then on Oct. 22 at Idaho State, O'Brien racked up a Big Sky leading 13 blocks and Aubrey Mitchell added a career-best 10. On Nov. 5 at NAU, O'Brien tallied her third double-digit block performance with 11, giving her the most in a season by a Viking since Michelle Segun did it four times in 2007.

NET STUFFERS, PART TWO: As noted above, freshmen Leigh-Ann Haataja and Katie O'Brien produced big numbers blocking wise for the Viks in 2011. Those two, along with Aubrey Mitchell, combined for 11 matches of at least eight blocks. The last time PSU had that many was in 2007 when there were 18 occurrances. Additionally, O'Brien was the only player in the conference to have her name appear more than once in the top 10 individual blocking performances on the season. She is on the list a remarkable four times – 13 blocks, 11 blocks, 10 blocks, and nine blocks.

BLOCK PARTY: The Vikings concluded the season with 308.5 team blocks, their second-highest total since 1996. Their 2.66 bps average is also the second-best mark. The 2007 squad holds the DI era record with 319 blocks and a 3.04 bps average. Katie O'Brien (147), Leigh-Ann Haataja (111), Aubrey Mitchell (96) and Garyn Schlatter (93) accumulated the vast majority of the blocks with a total of 447. That is the second-highest by a foursome in PSU's DI era, trailing only four players from the '07 team, of course. That year, Michelle Segun (180), Erica Jepsen (126), Christie Hamilton (103) and Nique Fradella (83) combined for 492 blocks.   

ADD ANOTHER FROSH TO THE MIX: After playing in just 15 sets over PSU's first 19 matches, freshman Tineke Bierma got thrown into the mix on the outside after fellow frosh Cheyne Corrado went down with a foot injury. Over the final 12 matches, Bierma played in 37 sets, averaging 1.97 kps and hitting .167. Through the first 19 contests she was averaging 1.13 kps with a -.050 hitting mark. Her biggest contribution may have come over the weekend of Oct. 28-29, when PSU defeated the Montana schools at the Stott Center. Over those two matches, Bierma averaged 3.00 kps, posting 12 kills vs. MSU and nine vs. the Griz, while hitting .432.

ACES ALL AROUND: Both Dominika Kristinikova and Kaeli Patton served up five aces in a match this year, and were two of just seven players in the Big Sky to reach that total. Kristinikova did it against Weber State on Sept. 17, while Patton had five vs. Seattle on Aug. 31.

SWEEPING BY THE OPPOSITION: All three of the Vikings' victories in El Paso came via the sweep, marking the first time since 2007 that their first three wins were all sweeps. In 2010, Portland State didn't record its third sweep until its seventh victory and 13th match overall. On the season, nine of the Vikings' 18 victories were in straight sets.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Vikings had their 16-match Big Sky Conference home winning streak snapped with their 3-1 loss to Idaho State on Sept. 16. But even with that defeat, the Vikings have easily posted the league's best home record the past five years under Michael Seemann. PSU is 36-4 in conference home regular season matches and has lost just 23 sets, going a perfect 8-0 in 2007, 2009 and 2010. This year they finished 6-2.

MORE ON THE HOME COURT ADVANTAGE: PSU has gone 51-4 at home in Big Sky Conference regular season matches over the past six seasons (7-0 in 2005, 8-0 in 2006, 8-0 in 2007, 6-2 in 2008, 8-0 in 2009, 8-0 in 2010, 6-2 in 2011). The Viks had a 29-match home conference winning streak that started in 2005 and lasted until a 3-2 loss vs. Sac State on Oct. 17, 2008. Overall since 2005, PSU has gone 69-11 at home and has lost just 66 sets, including only two in 2007, and has lost only 32 sets against conference foes. Under Michael Seemann at the Stott, PSU is 50-9, 36-4 Big Sky.

ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL FIRST HALF: At 5-3, Portland State finished up the first half of Big Sky play with a non-losing record for the seventh consecutive season. PSU last had a losing first half record in 2004, when they went 3-4.

RARE OCCURRANCE: Portland State hit .192 in both of its matches against Montana (Sept. 23) and Montana State (Sept. 24). That marked the first time since they joined the Big Sky in 1996 – a span of 433 matches – that they had hit for the same percentage in back-to-back contests.

FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME: Portland State picked up its first win of the season when getting outhit by their opponent on Sept. 24, at Montana State. The Bobcats won the percentage battle, .210-.192, but PSU still escaped with a five-set victory. It was also the Vikings' first win when getting outhit since the 2007 Big Sky tournament. On Nov. 23, 2007, Weber State outhit the Viks, .226-.164, but PSU left with a 3-2 victory.

DIGS, DIGS AND MORE DIGS: In their match against UC Irvine on Sept. 10, the Vikings recorded an astounding 134 digs, while UCI finished with 132. It was the highest total by a PSU squad since Oct. 22, 2005, when they tallied 126 against Idaho State. It was just the sixth time since 2005 that a PSU team has eclipsed the 100-dig mark and also just the sixth time for a Viking opponent. Megan Ellis led the way with 30, becoming the first Vik to reach the 30-dig mark since Jalen Pendon-Thomas had 35 against Sac State on Oct. 17, 2008. That match against the Hornets was also the last time PSU had three players go over the 20-dig mark. But they actually ended up with four against UC Irvine as Ellis, Cheyne Corrado (27), Dominika Kristinikova (23) and Nicole Bateham (21) each had at least 20 digs.

MORE ON THE DIGS: Nicole Bateham became the second Viking to go over the 30-dig mark when she tallied 32 at Montana on Sept. 23. That was the first time since 2008 that PSU had at least two 30-plus dig performances. That season, Jalen Pendon-Thomas had a 35-dig match and a 33-dig match. Bateham also had 30 digs at Eastern Washington on Nov. 12, while Megan Ellis tallied 30 vs. UC Irvine on Sept. 10.

BRINGING HOME THE DAM CUP, AGAIN: With a victory over Eastern Washington on Nov. 12, Portland State clinched the Dam Cup for the second straight season. A rivalry series between PSU and EWU that was started last year, the so-named rivalry refers to the four dams linking Oregon and Washington that one passes on the 339-mile drive from the Portland State campus to the Eastern Washington campus. Located along the Columbia River, they are: the Bonneville Dam, The Dalles Dam, the John Day Dam, and the McNary Dam. Points are earned from the teams playing each other in five sports: football (4 pts), soccer (1 pt), volleyball (2 pts each victory), men's and women's basketball (2 pts each victory).  There are 17 points possible and nine is needed to secure the Dam Cup. PSU has tallied all nine points this year, having won the football game, the soccer match and two volleyball contests. Last year, PSU won the cup, 9-8.

A SIGN OF GOOD THINGS?: The six freshmen on this year's squad compromise what matches the biggest incoming crop of high school players ever for the Vikings. The only other time PSU has brought in six freshman was 2006 and that class, led by the likes of Nique Fradella, Erica Jepsen, Jennifer Oney and Marija Vojnovic, went on to lead the Vikings to a pair of conference titles and the school's first trip to the NCAA tourney. Those six finished second in their first year in '06, then tied Sac State for the regular season championship as sophomores. This year's freshman crop finished second as well. Stay tuned to see what happens during their sophomore campaign.

THE MAN IN CHARGE: Now with five seasons as the head coach under his belt, Michael Seemann has compiled a 101-47 overall mark (.682) and 64-16 Big Sky record (.800) during his time on the Park Blocks. In each of his first four seasons at Portland State, Seemann posted at least 20 wins every year. He has led the Vikings to three Big Sky Conference regular season titles (2007, 2009, 2010) and a pair of conference tournament titles (2008, 2010). His Viking squads have been particularly impressive at the Peter W. Stott Center, going 50-9 and losing just 49 sets. The 2010 Big Sky Coach of the Year, Seemann has watched his players be named all-conference 18 times, including eight first team selections. In 2009, Nique Fradella was named Big Sky MVP, and last year it was Whitney Phillips who was tabbed at the league's top player. Seemann spent two years as an assistant under Jeff Mozzochi before taking over the reigns and was a big part of the Vikings' turnaround in 2005. Since he has been a part of the program, PSU has gone 143-63. PSU players have also excelled in the classroom over the past five years, with 30 players being named to the Big Sky Fall All-Academic Team, including a school record 10 in 2010 (the 2011 team will be announced in January). Additionally, in 2008 and 2009, Erica Jepsen (2006-09) was a first team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VIII honoree. In 2007, Jepsen was a third team pick, while Nique Fradella (2006-09) earned second team honors.

A COMPLETE 180: During Portland State's first nine seasons as an NCAA Division I member (1996-2004), they compiled just a 76-168 (.311) record. But over the past seven seasons (2005-present), PSU has already totalled more wins than in those first nine seasons combined, going 143-63 (.694). Additionally, the Viks have tallied a 88-22 mark in the Big Sky the past seven years after going 25-111 from 1996-2004. The turnaround can be credited to the re-hiring of Jeff Mozzochi as head coach in 2001. The Viks were just 34-82 from 1996-2000 after making the jump to DI play in 1996. Mozzochi inherited a program that was 0-25 in 2000 and had just nine wins over the previous three seasons, and guided the Viks to four wins in his first year back on the Park Blocks. PSU then won 10 games in 2002, and 14 in each of the next two seasons before breaking through with a 21-9 mark in 2005. Mozzochi led the Vikings to a 21-7 mark in 2006 and then handed the reigns over to Michael Seemann, who was the associate head coach. Seemann has continued to build on the foundation that Mozzochi laid as he has a 101-47 record and has won three conference regular season titles in his five years as the man in charge of the program.