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Sacramento State Hornets
(19-18 Overall, 7-4 BSC)
Interim Head Coach: Lori Perez (Sacramento State, '02)
Record at SAC: 19-18 (1st year); Big Sky: 7-4 (1st year)

#1 Oregon Ducks
(37-5 Overall)
Head Coach: Mike White (Mount Mercy College, '89)
Record at OU: 210-71 (5th year)

Portland State Vikings
(7-28 Overall, 2-9 BSC)
Head Coach: Barb Sherwood (Troy, 1999)
Record at PSU: 7-28 (1st year); Big Sky: 2-9, (1st year)

First Pitch
This Week: The Vikings will play four games over the next seven days starting with a three-game Big Sky Conference series at Sacramento State beginning Friday, April 18 with a doubleheader at 12 p.m. PT. The series finale is Saturday, April 19 at 12 p.m. Portland State will then play a non-conference game against #1 Oregon Tuesday, April 22 at 4 p.m. The Vikings and Ducks were slated for a doubleheader but due to class schedules, the day has been shortened to s single game. 

Follow the Vikings: Live stats for all four games will be available. This week's games at Sacramento State will also have a live audio broadcast, provided by Sacramento State. Tuesday's game at Oregon will feature a live video stream. Links for all can be found on GoViks.com. 

Last Week: The Vikings dropped their Big Sky series at Northern Colorado (1-2) last week in Greeley, CO. The Bears took the first game 17-5 in five innings before the Vikings came back to tie the series with a 9-1, five inning, win in game two. Northern Colorado ran away with the series with a 19-2 five inning win in the series finale. Melissa Masters went 4-for-8 in the series with a pair of runs scored and a three-run home run. She also went 1-1 in the circle on the weekend including her second win of the season in game two. Becca Bliss, Crysta Conn, and Alicia Fine each added four hits in the series for the Vikings. 

Looking at Sacramento State: The Hornets are 19-18 under interim head coach Lori Perez entering the weekend. They are 7-4 in Big Sky play and 8-3 at home. Sacramento State lost its first Big Sky series of the year last weekend going 1-2 at Idaho State. The Hornets took the first game 9-3 before dropping a pair of one-run games 6-5 and 3-2 respectively. 
     The Hornets enter play this weekend third in the Big Sky with a .289 team batting average. They have outscored their opponents 149-122 this season. Sasha Margulies leads the team with a .373 batting average; she also leads the team with eight doubles, 15 walks, and 20 RBIs. Paige Castro is hitting .330 with a team-high three triples. Sacramento State has 52 doubles on the season with eight triple, but only seven home runs.  
     Sacramento State has the league's best pitching staff, anchored by Caitlin Brooks who has a league-best 1.55 ERA. She is 6-5 this season in 11 games. Brooks has gone the distance in 10 of her 12 starts including a pair of shutouts. As a unit, they have a 2.80 ERA and have allowed only 95 earned runs in 37 games. Kaitlyn Yerby is 3-2 with a 2.46 ERA while Jennifer Hartman is 5-5 with a 3.56 ERA. Taylor Stoud rounds out the staff and is 5-6 with a 3.66 ERA. 

Last Year vs. SAC: Portland State took the season series a year ago, 2-1, in Portland. The Vikings took the first game 1-0 before losing 8-0 in six innings in game two. The Vikings took the series with a 6-5 win in nine innings. Becca Bliss hit a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the ninth to win the series. It was her second home run of the day.  
 
Looking at #1 Oregon: The Ducks enter the week as the unanimous No. 1 team in the country at 37-5 overall and 7-1 at home. Oregon has won 10 of its last 11 games including a series sweep of No. 5 Washington. Oregon took over the No. 1 spot with a 2-1 series win over then-No. 1 UCLA in Eugene. 
     Oregon is hitting .338 as a team, ninth in the nation. Courtney Ceo is seventh in the country with a .481 batting average. She is fourth in the Pacific-12 Conference with 40 run scored. Alexa Peterson is hitting .357  with a team-high 44 RBIs. Kailee Cuico is hitting .306 with 41 RBIs and a team-high 12 home runs. Oregon is slugging .537 as a team with 48 doubles, 15 triples, and 46 home runs.
     Oregon's pitching staff is 15th in the nation with a 1.83 ERA. Cheridan Hawkins is 22-3 on the season with a 1.39 ERA. Karissa Hovinga is 11-1 with a 2.05 ERA. Oregon has allowed just 71 earned runs over 277 innings. 

Last Year vs. UO: Oregon took both ends of a doubleheader last season in Portland. The Ducks took the first game 5-0 before winning 8-0 in five innings in game two. 
 
Up Next: Following games at Sacramento State and at Oregon, the Vikings will head to Corvallis, OR for a doubleheader with Oregon State on Tuesday, April 29 before hosting Weber State for their final three home games. 

News & Notes
Conn Extends Streak: Senior 3B Crysta Conn extended her hitting streak to seven game at Northern Colorado (4/11-12). Conn is hitting .450 (9-for-20) with five runs scored, three doubles, eight runs batted in and a pair of home runs during her streak. 

Wright Throws Complete Game Gem: Sophomore RHP Karyn Wright picked up her second win of the season with a complete game shutout of Seattle (4/9). Wright allowed just three hits while walking four in the win. 

Conn Brings the Power: Senior 3B Crysta Conn went 3-for-8 against Southern Utah (April 4-5) with three runs scored. She hit home runs in back-to-back games for the first time in her career. She drove in a team-high five RBIs on the weekend. 

Conn in the Books: Senior 3B Crysta Conn hit her 13th career home run at Southern Utah (4/5) which moves her into a tie for eighth all-time at Portland State. Her five home runs this season is a single-season career high. 

Consistently Fine: Junior SS Alicia Fine has hit safely in 20 of the last 22 games and has improved her batting average to .305 in the process. She has gone on a pair of six-game hitting streaks this season. She has gone 4-for-6 with two runs scored, two RBIs, and a double in the last two games. 

Masters at the Plate: Sophomore UT/P Melissa Masters had the best weekend of her short career at the plate against North Dakota (3/29). Masters went 5-for-7 (.714) with four runs, a double, triple, and a home run, and three RBIs over the two games. She had a combined OPS of 2.321. She opened the series going 3-for-3 with a pair of runs and a pair of RBIs and was a home run shy of the cycle. She also threw four innings and allowed just one earned run on five hits while striking out two in the game. She picked up the home run in the second game of the series after going 2-for-4. 

Hendrickson Keeps on Hitting: Junior 1B Brittany Hendrickson pushed her hitting streak to six games after hitting safely in both games against North Dakota (3/29) and the first game at Southern Utah (4/4). Over the streak, Hendrickson hit .556 (10-for-18) with five runs, three doubles, two home runs, four walks, sacrifice fly, and eight RBIs. Hendrickson slugged 1.056 with a .609 on base percentage. Hendrickson struck out just once over the streak.  

Bliss' Big Game: Senior CF Becca Bliss posted the Vikings' first four-hit game of the season going 4-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBIs in game two against North Dakota (3/29). Bliss also pushed her hitting streak to four games. Bliss is 9-for-16 (.563) with five runs, two doubles, and four RBIs over the stretch. 

Monster Weekend: Junior 1B Brittany Hendrickson had arguably her best three-game stretch of her career as the Vikings went 1-2 against Idaho State to open Big Sky Conference play. Hendrickson went 6-for-7 at the plate for a .857 batting average. She scored a pair of runs, doubled, and hit two home runs including a walk-off grand slam in game two. Hendrickson drove in eight runs on the weekend, six of which came with two outs. She slugged 1.857 on the weekend with 13 total bases. She added a pair of walks for an .800 on base percentage and a combined OPS of 2.657. She went a perfect 3-for-3 with runners in scoring position and 4-for-5 with two outs. 

Player of the Week for Hendrickson: Junior 1B Brittany Hendrickson was named the Big Sky Conference's Player of the Week for games played March 18-23. It was the second career Player of the Week honor for Hendrickson.

Walk-Off Winner: Junior 1B Brittany Hendrickson hit a walk-off grand slam against Idaho State (3/22) to give the Vikings a 10-2, six inning win in game two of the three-game series. It was her second career grand slam and the Vikings' first walk-off home run since Aubrey Nitschelm hit a three-run walk-off home run to defeat Southern Utah in the opening game of the 2013 Big Sky Conference Tournament.  

Masterful Win: Sophomore RHP Melissa Masters picked up her first career win in her first career start against Idaho State (3/22) in game two. Masters allowed just two earned runs over 5 1/3 innings while giving up just four hits to the best hitting team in the Big Sky in arguably her best outing as a Viking. 

Conference Openers: Portland State is now 1-1 in Big Sky Conference openers. Portland State is now 7-2 over its last nine conference openers going back to Pacific Coast Softball Conference play. 

Home Field Advantage: Portland State has embraced its home field advantage at Erv Lind Stadium over the past nine years, including 2014. The Vikings are 87-39 (.690) overall at Erv Lind and 72-18 (.800) in conference play over that span. PSU went 10-2 at home in conference play in 2012 and a perfect 12-0 in 2010 and 2006. The Vikings are 1-4 at home this season including a pair of games at Hood View Park.  

Three-Bagger: Junior RF Aubrey Nitschelm hit the Vikings' first triple of the season to drive in two runs against Monmouth (3/16). 

Celaya's Big Weekend: Sophomore OF Brianna Celaya had the best weekend of her young career going 5-for-12 (.417) with a pair of doubles and the first three RBIs of her career at the Stanford Louisville Slugger Classic. She opened the weekend going 1-for-3 with her first career RBI against BYU. She then hit safely in both games against No. 17 Stanford before recording her first multi-hit game of her career going 2-for-3 with a double and 2 RBIs against UC Daivs (3/8) to cap a four-game hitting streak. 

Stolen Bases: Portland State is 14-for-20 in stolen base attempts this season. The Vikings  barely ran last year going just 10-for-16 in 56 games.

The Wright Stuff: Sophomore RHP Karyn Wright posted her first career complete game shutout in the Vikings' 2-0 win over Rutgers (3/2) at the CSUN Invitational. Wright allowed just five hits over seven innings and did not allow a walk. 

Conn Shows Off the Power: Senior 3B Crysta Conn hit her third home run of the season to give the Vikings a 2-0 win over Rutgers (3/2). Conn's home run against the Scarlet Knights was the first home run of the season by the Vikings in a game which they won. 

Chicks Dig The Long Ball: Portland State hit five home runs in a 13-12 loss to Hawai'i (2/15) at the Easton Desert Classic. Not only did the Vikings hit five home runs, they also hit five home runs by five different players, three in one inning. 

Solid in the Field: The Vikings have played solidly in the field this season for a league-best .969 fielding percentage. The fielding mark is up from a year ago when the Vikings had a .956 fielding percentage and committed 1.3 errors per game.  

Going Streaking: Aubrey Nitschelm, Alicia Fine, and Brittany Hendrickson have all gone on six-game hitting streaks this season. Nitschelm went 8-for-18 (.444) with four runs scored a double and a home run while driving in six over her streak while Fine went 7-for-17 (.412) with a run scored, RBI, and a walk over her stretch. Brittany Hendrickson went 10-for-18 (.556) with five runs, three doubles, two home runs, and eight RBIs over her streak. 

Conn's Hot Start: Senior 3B Crysta Conn got her senior year off to a hot start, going 8-for-16 (.500) over the first five games. She hit safely in four games, three straight, with four multi-hit games. She slugged .750 with a double and a home run and drove in four over that span. Conn has a team-high five multi-hit games this season.  

Hendrix Gets First Win: Freshman LHP Meagan Hendrix picked up the first two wins of her career at the Kajikawa Classic. Hendrix has had some good moments and some not so good moments in the circle. She combined for her first career shutout, a 10-0 win over New Mexico in five innings, but has also given up four home runs, including a grand slam. 

Bliss Out For Season: Sophomore C Lauran Bliss will miss the remainder of the season after sustaining injuries to both of her wrists in a collision at first base against Indiana (2/7).  

Season Notes
Power Bats: The Vikings had a power explosion a year ago resulting in 45 home runs. The total was the second best in program history, four shy of the all-time mark of 49 set in 2006. The Vikings hit 26 solo home runs, 12 two-run home runs, six three-run home runs, and a grand slam. PSU hit just 27 home runs in all of 2012.  

Triple Crown: Junior 1B Brittany Hendrickson won the Portland State "Triple Crown" a year ago by leading the Vikings in batting average (.350), home runs (9), and runs batted in (42). Hendrickson had a trio of five-RBI games in 2013 against UC Riverside (3/2), East Carolina (3/8), and North Dakota (5/4). 

Preseason Poll: Despite being the defending Co-Regular Season Big Sky Champions and Big Sky Tournament Champions, Portland State was selected to finish fourth in the Big Sky Coaches' Preseason Poll. Idaho State was selected first followed by Sacramento State and Southern Utah. 

Big Sky Tournament: The 2014 Big Sky Softball Tournament will be played May 8-10 at the home of the regular season champion. It will be a four-team double-elimination tournament. 
Inaugural Big Sky Season: The Vikings finished in a tie for first in the inaugural Big Sky softball season in 2013. PSU and ISU finished with identical 14-4 conference records. The Bengals won the right to host the conference tournament after taking the season series, 2-1, in Pocatello.  

Inaugural Big Sky Tournament: Portland State rolled through the inaugural Big Sky tournament in 2013 going 3-0 to advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Vikings run-ruled Southern Utah, 8-0, behind home runs from Brittany Hendrickson and Aubrey Nitschelm. Hendrickson's home run was the first ever at the Big Sky Tournament. PSU then defeated host team Idaho State thanks to a two-run homer by Sadie Lopez in the top of the seventh to win 5-3. The Vikings then blanked Southern Utah again, this time 4-0, to win the conference tournament. 

Three Straight: The Vikings made it to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season in 2013, fifth time in the last eight. The Vikings fell in the first game of the tournament to #11 Washington 2-1 despite a one-hitter from pitcher Anna Bertrand. The Vikings then fell, 5-0, to Minnesota to be eliminated from the tournament.  

First-Year Head Coach: Barb Sherwood is in her first season as head coach at Portland State. Sherwood spent the last five seasons as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at Virginia Tech. Sherwood added first-year assistant coaches Tory Yamaguchi (Indiana, '07) and Kelly Melone (Texas, '09) to her staff.