Complete game notes (PDF)

UP NEXT: The Portland State softball team (10-13) opens up PCSC Mountain Division play with a four-game series at Utah Valley this weekend. The Vikings and Wolverines will play twice on Friday, starting at 11 a.m. PT, then two more times on Saturday, starting at 9 a.m. PT. Utah Valley plays a two-game series against the University of Missouri-Kansas City today (March 28), before hosting PSU.

GAMES NO. 24-27
at Utah Valley (18-6-1)
Friday, March 30  •  11 a.m. PT  •  Doubleheader
Saturday, March 31  •  9 a.m. PT  •  Doubleheader
Orem, Utah  •  Wolverine Field

COVERAGE
Gametracker: WolverineGreen.com
Live audio: None

PCSC OPENERS: PSU is 7-2 all-time in PCSC openers, including 1-1 since the league split into two divisions. The Vikings had won four-straight openers until suffering a 5-4 loss to Utah Valley on April 9, 2011. This will be the first time since 2005 that they have opened league play on the road and they are 2-1 all-time when opening conference action away from Erv Lind. Additionally, the Vikings have won six of their league opening four-game series, lost two and split once.

THE LAST TIME OUT: Portland State dropped a doubleheader to Boise State on Tuesday, falling 4-0 in game one, and 3-2 in eight innings in the second contest. The Vikings managed three just hits, all singles, in the opener, but bounced back with a better effort in game two. PSU led 1-0 until a two-run homer in the top of the sixth put the Broncos on top. Down to their final two outs, PSU rallied behind a one-out single by Alexa Morales and a two-base throwing error by the Broncos. Pinch runner Danai Martin was able to move around to third, then raced home on Sadie Lopez' groundout to the pitcher. Boise State ended up winning though, as they plated a run in the top of the eighth and the Vikings' Becca Bliss was thrown out at home to end the game.

PSU-UVU SERIES TIDBITS: PSU won the first three in the series, but the Wolverines have won five of the past eight after taking three of four in Portland last spring ... UVU managed to win last year's series, 3-1, despite the Vikings outscoring them 15-11 and outhitting them .268-.208 ... the Vikings went 2-2 in their only trip to Orem in 2010 ... Karmen Holladay batted .545 (6-for-11) with seven RBIs in the series last year ... Anna Bertrand suffered a pair of losses last spring despite striking out 20 and holding UVU to a .200 batting average over 13 innings ... Bertrand is 0-4 all-time against the Wolverines, but has 37 Ks and has held them to a .194 batting average in 28 innings of work ... Sadie Lopez is hitting .333 (7-for-21) in her career against UVU ... prior to playing at Utah Valley in 2010, the Vikings had made only other one trip to the Beehive State in the history of the program, playing in a tournament hosted by Utah in 2006.

SUCCESS ON THE ROAD: Over the past three years under Tobin Echo-Hawk, the Vikings are 25-7 in PCSC road games. Last year, the Vikings rolled to an 11-1 away record in league action, outscoring the opposition 88-25 and outhitting them .377-.185. Over the past three years in PCSC road games, PSU has outscored the opposition 196-88 and outhit them .349-.221.

INSIDE THE RPI: Portland State was 106th in the latest RPI rankings released on March 26, putting them third amongst all PCSC schools. LMU is the highest ranked at 50, followed by Utah Valley at 98. After PSU, the order is as follows: Sacramento State - 121, San Diego - 134, Northern Colorado - 149, Weber State - 164, Cal State Bakersfield - 185, Seattle - 199, Idaho State - 221, Saint Mary's - 224, Santa Clara - 272.

THE WORKHORSE: After two years of sharing the circle with all-conference pitcher Nichole Latham, Anna Bertrand has been nothing short of a workhorse for the Vikings in the circle this spring, throwing 111 1/3 of their 150 1/3 innings and appearing in 19 of their 22 games. As always, she continues to shine and leads the PCSC in strikeouts (103) and strikeouts looking (26), while also ranking second in innings pitched and opponent batting average, fourth in ERA and tied for fourth in victories.

SWINGING A BIG STICK: Senior Karmen Holladay has been swinging a big stick to start the year, hitting over .300 in four of the first five tournaments. She earned her first PCSC Mountain Division Player of the Week honor on March 20, after going 4-for-6 with two homers, a double and seven RBI over two games in Boise. For the season, 13 of her 24 hits have gone for extra bases. She leads the team in batting average (.358), doubles (6), home runs (7), RBIs (18), multi-hit games (7) and multi-RBI games (5). In the PCSC, Holladay is second in slugging, third in homers, tied for sixth in doubles, eighth in total bases and 10th in batting average. Additionally, she has already surpassed her home run (4) and doubles (4) totals of a year ago.

HOMERIN' HOLLADAY: With two more home runs in Boise over March 16-17, Karmen Holladay now has seven in 2012, which ties her for ninth on the single-season list at Portland State. Her 11 career round trippers ranks her eighth all-time on the Park Blocks, leaving her one short of seventh, two shy of sixth and four shy of fifth.

SWEET SWINGING FRESHMAN: Freshman IF/DP Brittany Hendrickson has opened her Viking career in brilliant fashion, batting .304 through the first 23 games. She hit .533 (8-for-15) in Las Vegas, tallying two hits in four of five games and in each of the final three. A lefty, Hendrickson has perhaps the sweetest looking swing on the club. She had one of her best games against No. 9/10 Stanford on Feb. 11, going 2-for-3 with a double to left center. She could have easily had another double if not for a nice play in the left center gap by Cardinal centerfielder Sarah Hassman. Against Long Beach State on Feb. 19, she racked up four RBIs, including three on her first triple. She is currently second on the team in hits (21), doubles (3) and slugging percentage (.420), and third in batting average, RBIs (9) and on-base percentage (.351).

IT'S A FINE TIME: Over the past several weeks, freshman SS Alicia Fine has upped her game, raising her batting average from .250 on March 1, to her current mark of .278. Fine has batted .292 (7-for-24) with two home runs, two doubles and six RBIs over the past eight games. She hit what appeared to be her first career home run against No. 1 Alabama on March 14, but it was wiped out after the game was cancelled after two innings. It didn't matter, as she belted a two-run shot against Boise State on March 16, to tie the game up in the top of the seventh. In her next at-bat, which game the next day vs. Utah State, Fine hit a solo shot and finished the game 2-for-4.

BALL MAGNET: In what has become somewhat of a running joke, sophomore Crysta Conn has been referred to as a ball magnet by her teammates and coaches. After getting hit by a pitch six times last year, which was three more than anyone else on the squad, Conn has already been hit eight times this season, which is a school single season record. Her total of 14 is now the all-time record on the Park Blocks as she passed up Mandy Hill (13) in early March.

MORE SAC FLIES: Just two games into the season, Crysta Conn added another sac fly to her resume against Cal Poly, then hit her PCSC-leading second vs. Santa Clara on Feb. 24. Her five last year were a school single-season record and with seven in her career, she is now tied for the career lead with Lacey Holm (2010-11).

BLISSFUL ON THE BASE PATHS: Sophomore Becca Bliss is a perfect 5 for 5 on stolen base attempts this season and is now 11 for 11 in her career. She is the lone Viking over the past two years who is perfect on stolen base attempts.

THE REGULARS: Four Vikings have started all 23 games this season: Becca Bliss, Crysta Conn, Brittany Hendrickson and Karmen Holladay and Carly McEachran. Of those players, only Conn has started all 75 games since the start of the 2011 season. Conn had made 72 straight starts at third base until starting as the DP on March 17, against Utah State.