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THIS WEEK: The PSU softball team (23-15, 9-3 PCSC) heads to the state of Colorado for six games from April 30-May 2. The Vikings will face conference-foe Northern Colorado (13-31, 9-3 PCSC) twice on Saturday and twice on Sunday, with both days games scheduled to start at 11 a.m. PT. PSU then heads over to Ft. Collins, where they will play a doubleheader at Colorado State (7-36) on Monday, May 2, starting at 12 p.m. PT.

GAMES 39-42
at Northern Colorado (13-31, 9-3 PCSC)
Saturday, April 30  •  11 a.m. PT  •  Doubleheader
Sunday, May 1  •  11 a.m. PT  •  Doubleheader
Greeley, CO  •  Butler-Hancock Softball Field

GAMES 43-44
at Colorado State (7-36)
Monday, May 2  •  12 p.m. PT  •  Doubleheader
Ft. Collins, CO  •  Ram Field

COVERAGE
Live Audio: GoViks.com
Play-By-Play: Teri Mariani
Live Stats vs UNC: UNCBears.com (Links can be found on GoViks.com under the LIVE EVENTS tab)
Live Stats vs CSU: CSURams.com (Links can be found on GoViks.com under the LIVE EVENTS tab)

PSU-UNC SERIES INFO
Overall: PSU leads 6-1   
In Greeley: First Meeting   
Streak: PSU 5
Last PSU Win: PSU 5, UNC 2; PSU 5, UNC 2 (Doubleheader; 4/11/10 @ PSU)
Last UNC Win: UNC 4, PSU 3 (3/29/07 @ PSU)

PSU-COLORADO STATE SERIES INFO
Overall: CSU leads 2-1   
In Ft. Collins: First Meeting   
Streak: CSU 2
Last PSU Win: PSU 6, CSU 5 (2/21/04 @ Troy Cox Classic; Las Cruces, NM)
Last CSU Win: CSU 4, PSU 9 (2/7/08 @ Cathedral City Kickoff Classic; Palm Springs, CA)

SCHEDULE CHANGES: Portland State's scheduled contest with Oregon State on Tuesday, May 10, has now been switched to a doubleheader. First pitch is still slated for 5 p.m., but that could be changed. Check back on GoViks.com for updates.

WINNING STREAKS: The Vikings enter this weekend riding a 10-game winning streak, which is the second longest in school history and the best ever during their DI era (1999-present). This year's streak trails only the 1991 squad's 12-straight victories. PSU has won eight straight on the road, which is also the second best mark in school history. The 1991 team won 12 straight road games at one point.

BACK ON TRACK: After a disappointing PCSC-opening weekend in which they lost three of four at home to Utah Valley, April 9-10, the Vikings have bounced back with eight straight conference victories and 10 wins in a row overall. PSU swept four games from Idaho State, April 16-17, then took four from Seattle this past weekend, April 22-23. Yesterday, April 26, the Vikings swept visiting North Dakota in a non-league doubleheader. PSU's eight consecutive PCSC wins have thrust them back into contention for a second straight Mountain Division title as they are tied with Northern Colorado for first place at 9-3.

BERTRAND NAMED PCSC MOUNTAIN DIVISION PITCHER OF THE WEEK (APR. 26): Portland State's Anna Bertrand was named the Pacific Coast Softball Conference Mountain Division Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday. A sophomore righty from McMinnville, Ore., Bertrand pitched a pair of complete game shutouts against Seattle this past week, helping Portland State sweep a four-game conference series from the Redhawks. On Friday, Bertrand held Seattle to three hits over seven innings, striking out four and walking one as the Vikings claimed a 8-0 win. She followed that up the next afternoon by limiting the Redhawks to just a pair of singles in a 2-0 PSU victory. Bertrand again struck out four and also walked three batters. For the weekend, Bertrand posted a 2-0 record and 0.00 ERA with eight strikeouts and seven walks. She allowed only five hits as Seattle batted just .109 against her. This is Bertrand's second honor of the year and the sixth of her career. Portland State has now won three PCSC Player of the Week awards and six PCSC Pitcher of the Week honors this season. 

SHUTOUT VICTORIES: The Vikings' 5-0 win in game one yesterday against North Dakota was their fourth consecutive shutout victory. The last time PSU won four straight via the shutout came in their final four games of the 2008 season when they won three in a row at Santa Clara, then closed out the year with a 1-0 victory at home over Oregon State.

BIG NUMBERS OVER THE PAST TEN: Over the past ten games, all of which have been victories, the Vikings have put up some impressive numbers, both offensively and in the circle. PSU is batting .374 and has outscored the opposition 69-19 over their 10-game winning streak, and also has a .516 slugging percentage and .424 on-base percentage. Six of the regulars are hitting over the .400 mark and eight of their starters are hitting at least .285. Three PSU pitchers have combined for a 1.62 ERA and held opponents to a .185 batting average. Prior to their 10-straight wins, the Vikings were just 2-8 in their previous 10 contests. Over that span, PSU hit .245 with a .379 slugging mark and .276 on-base percentage. They only outscored their opponents, 34-33. Additionally, only one starter was batting over the .300 mark. In the circle, PSU had a 2.83 ERA and opponents were batting .258.

HOMER HAPPY: With 22 home runs already this season, the Vikings have already surpassed last season's total of 19. PSU didn't hit its 19th homer of 2010 until May 9, which came in their 54th contest. Carly McEachran leads the team with four home runs, while Crysta Conn, Karmen Holladay and Lacey Holm each have three.

LOTS OF TRIPLES: The Vikings have also been racking up triples in 2011, with 12 already, two more than they had all of last season. Jenna Krogh and Carly McEachran have both hit four, which leads the PCSC. Last year, the Vikings didn't record their first triple until their 19th game and didn't tally their 10th triple until game number 48.

IMPROVED OFFENSIVE NUMBERS: Heading into the 2011 season, Head Coach Tobin Echo-Hawk wasn't sure where the offense would come from. The Vikings lost three of the top four hitters from a year ago and welcomed in several new faces this spring. But so far, the Vikings have greatly surpassed the numbers they put up through the first 38 games of 2010. PSU is hitting .296, compared to .233 through the first 38 games of play a year ago, and has tallied 69 more runs, 70 more runs batted in, 12 more home runs and seven more triples. The slugging and on-base percentage numbers are significantly improved as well, as PSU is slugging .428 and has an on-base percentage of .350, compared to a .314 slugging percentage and .294 on-base percentage last spring. Last year, PSU had three starters hitting over .250 through the first 38 games, while this year there are eight over that mark. All of it adds up to an 23-15 record, compared to last year's 15-23 mark.

THE PITCHING IS BETTER TOO: Just like the offense, the Vikings' pitching has been better through the first 38 games of the season compared to last year. Anna Bertrand, Karmen Holladay and Nichole Latham have a combined 2.41 ERA and have held opponents to a .227 batting average, while last year through the first 38 games the Vikings' pitching staff had a 3.36 ERA and opponents were hitting .252.