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THIS WEEK: The Portland State volleyball squad plays four matches this week, including opening up their home slate by hosting Seattle on Wednesday at 7 p.m. From there, the Vikings will travel to Spokane to play in the Northwest Challenge, which will be hosted by Gonzaga. PSU takes on No. 8 Washington on Friday at 4 p.m., then faces Boise State at 10 a.m., and Gonzaga at 6 p.m., on Saturday.

MATCH NO. 1
vs. Seattle
Wednesday, Aug. 31  •  7 p.m. PT
Portland, OR  •  Stott Center

MATCH NO. 2
vs. No. 8 Washington
Friday, Sept. 2  •  4 p.m. PT
Spokane, WA  •  Martin Centre

MATCH NO. 3
vs. Boise State
Saturday, Sept. 3  •  10 a.m. PT
Spokane, WA  •  Martin Centre

MATCH NO. 4
at Gonzaga
Saturday, Sept. 3  •  6 p.m. PT
Spokane, WA  •  Martin Centre

HOW TO FOLLOW THE VIKS THIS WEEK: Wednesday's match against Seattle will feature both live stats and a live audio/video stream through GoViks.com. Teri Mariani will call the action. All three matches this weekend at the Northwest Challenge will feature live stats and a live video feed courtesy of Gonzaga. The live video stream requires a montly subscription ($9.95). Links for everything can be found on Gonzaga's website, GoZags.com, or by visiting GoViks.com and clicking on the LIVE EVENTS tab.

PSU–SEATTLE SERIES INFO: PSU has taken all four previous meetings from the Redhawks, including winning a pair of matches last season. The Vikings hold a 2-0 lead at the Stott Center, having swept Seattle last Oct. 7 and also on Sept. 13, 2008, in the very first meeting between these two schools.

PSU–WASHINGTON SERIES INFO: Washington has owned the series for quite some time, having won 11 straight. Last season on Sept. 3, the ninth-ranked Huskies swept PSU at the Northwest Challenge. The Vikings' last victory in the series came on Nov. 12, 1985, in Portland. On neutral courts, Washington holds a 8-1 advantage. In each of the past five meetings, the Huskies have been ranked in the top 10 in the AVCA poll. 

PSU–BOISE STATE SERIES INFO: Portland State holds a 14-3 lead in the series and has won two of three meetings at the Northwest Challenge over the past three seasons. Last year, the Broncos pulled out a 3-2 victory on their home court. Prior to meeting up at the 2008 Northwest Challenge in Seattle, these two teams had not played since Nov. 3, 1989. Their only neutral site meeting came in '08, a 3-0 PSU victory.

PSU–GONZAGA SERIES INFO: The Vikings lead the all-time series, 9-4, and have won four straight after the Bulldogs had a three-match winning streak. At last year's Northwest Challenge, PSU held on for a 3-2 victory. In Spokane, Portland State has won both of the previous matchups, including a 3-1 victory on Sept. 2, 2006, and a 3-0 win on Sept. 2, 1988.

STARTING OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT: The Vikings' season-opening trip to the Lone Star State can be considered a success after they went 3-1 and recorded three sweeps. With a roster that features six freshmen and four sophomores, the Vikings were throwing quite a few newcomers into the fire, so to speak. PSU opened its 2011 season by sweeping Nicholls State and losing, 3-1, to host UTEP on Aug. 26. The following day, the Vikings swept both UT Arlington and Southern. The match against UTA was particulary impressive as the Mavericks had the third frame at set point, leading 24-21. But the Vikings rattled our four straight points and ended up winning 27-25.

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. After one week of play it appears that junior OH Megan Ellis is that person. Ellis was the lone Viking named to the El Paso Sports Commission Volleyball All-Invitational Team last 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. In the league rankings, Ellis is second in kills, just one one-hundredth of a percentage point behind the leader, and 10th in hitting percentage.

THE LEFTY EMERGES: Vikings Head Coach Michael Seemann said going into this fall that he would seek a more balanced approach after Big Sky MVP Whitney Phillips got the vast majority of the swings that past two seasons. He has found his go-to-player on the left side in Megan Ellis and it appears he may have found a solution on the right side, where sophomore Aubrey Mitchell put up some good numbers in El Paso. The lefty from Reno averaged 2.00 kps and hit .352, which ranks fourth in the Big Sky. Mitchell hit over .300 in three of four matches, including tallying a .667 mark and nine kills vs. Southern. She also provided some good blocking, registering a career-best five block assists against UT Arlington and averaging 0.69 bps for the weekend.

SENIOR LEADERSHIP: DS/L Nicole Bateham is the lone senior on the squad this year and not only will she be counted on to provide solid leadership, but she will also need to set the tone in the backrow. After one weekend of action, Bateham is leading the Vikings in digs and is ranked fifth in the Big Sky, averaging 4.54 per set. She led PSU in digs in three of four matches, including registering 19 in the sweep of UT Arlington. Bateham also served well, tallying at least one ace in every match and recording five in all. She is currently tied for fourth in the Big Sky in service aces per set at 0.38.

QUITE THE DEBUT: Freshman MB Katie O'Brien may have been a late NLI signee in April, but so far she has looked like she may have the biggest impact of the six freshmen that Michael Seemann signed. O'Brien hit .579 last weekend, which leads the Big Sky, and averaged 2.09 kps and 0.91 bps. She hit over .300 in all four matches and actually hit .500 or better in three of the contests. Against Southern, O'Brien hit .800 (8-0-10), and in the loss to UTEP she was one of the few bright spots, hitting .600 (6-0-10) to go along with five total blocks.

BIG HITTERS: After one week of play, the Vikings lead the Big Sky in hitting percentage at .243. They opened the year by registering a .327 attack percentage in a sweep of Nicholls State, which was their highest opening-day mark since they hit .316 vs. Bucknell in 2007. They also hit .340 in their sweep of Southern.

STELLAR “D”: PSU is also leading the league in opponent hitting percentage, limiting other teams to a combined .116 mark. The Vikings held UT Arlington to an even .100 percentage, while keeping both Nicholls State (.035) and Southern (.081) below .100. They also outblocked the other team three times and are averaging 2.31 bps, compared to a 1.62 bps average for their four opponents.

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. Last year, Portland State didn't record its third sweep until its seventh victory and13th match overall.

SEEING DOUBLE: Three different Viking players recorded double-doubles this past weekend, led by Megan Ellis, who had two. Ellis is one of just eight players in the Big Sky to have more than one double-double, while PSU's four overall are tied for the second most in the league. Setters Dominika Kristinikova and Garyn Schlatter each have one apiece.

SPREADING THE WEALTH AROUND: As mentioned earlier, Michael Seemann said he will look for a more balanced offensive approach this year with the loss of Whitney Phillips to graduation. Even with Megan Ellis averaging 4.42 kps, the Vikings still have at least three other regular rotation players averaging 2.00 kps or better. Last year, just two Vikings averaged more than 2.00 kps, both through the first four matches and for the entire season.