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PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland State Vikings gave No. 14 Oregon all that it could handle but the Ducks were came out on top in four sets by scores of 25-22, 25-23, 23-25, and 25-16. It was the first set the Vikings had taken from the Ducks since forcing a five-set match in 2010.
 
"Obviously we wanted to get a different outcome," Head Coach Michael Seemann said following the match. "We did a good job in a lot of areas and improved in a lot of areas that we've been working on. That's good to see. Our system was resilient tonight."
 
Oregon (9-0 overall) came into the match hitting .307 as a team on the season but Portland State (2-8) was able to hold the Ducks to a lower hitting percentage of .237. The Vikings held Liz Brenner, Oregon's leading attacker, to just seven kills and a 0.77 hitting mark.
 
Portland State was all over the floor defensively tallying 56 digs, one of the Vikings' top marks of the season. Kasimira "Kasi" Clark led the way with a match-high 20 digs. Clark's 20 digs moved her into fourth all-time at Portland State in career digs with 1,509. She is just the fourth Viking to ever eclipse the 1,500-dig plateau.
 
Outside hitters Leigh-Ann Haataja and Roni LaPierre led the Vikings with 11 kill each. Haataja hit .409 in the match going for 11 kills with two errors on 22 attacks. LaPierre posted her second career double-double with 10 digs to go along with her 11 kills. Fellow outside hitter Cheyne Corrado added 10 kills and seven digs for the match.
 
The Vikings came out and took the first point of the match but the Ducks rattled off three straight to go up 3-1. Portland State put together a 5-0 run to retake the lead at 6-3. The Vikings held a three-point lead through much of the middle part of the first before the Ducks came back and tied set at 17-17.
 
Both teams kept it close not allowing the other to really put together much of a run. With the score tied at 20-20, Oregon was finally able to string a few points together and took the first set 25-22.
 
The Vikings were the more terminal team in the first set with 15 kills compared to the Ducks' 10 but Oregon held a 5-to-1 advantage in blocks at the net.
 
Portland State jumped out to a 3-1 lead early in the second and went up 6-2 on a huge stuff-block by Haataja and Katie O'Brien. The Haataja-O'Brien duo came into the match ninth and 10th respectively all-time at Portland State in total blocks.
 
The Vikings were all over the court keeping the ball in play and letting their hitters make plays. Kasi Clark kept the ball alive and was able to force a bad set on the other side of the court to put the Vikings up 12-9.
 
Later in the set, Haataja and O'Brien teamed up for another big block to give the Vikings a 15-14 lead. After Oregon scored two straight, O'Brien came up with a kill to even it again at 16-16.
 
Freshman setter Erin Clark went up and challenged a ball that was coming back over the net and dropped it in to tie the set at 20-20. After the teams traded points to 22-22, Oregon scored three of the final four points to take the second set 25-23.
 
Oregon came out of the break and went on a 6-1 run to open the third set. Erin Clark once again went up with a quick attack to break the streak. Kasi Clark posted her first service ace to pull the Vikings within three at 6-3. The Ducks started to separate in the third and went up by five at 13-7 before Haataja came up with a kill and then followed it with an ace to cut the lead to 13-9.
 
The Ducks tried to go on a run and put the match away but it was the Vikings that went on a 5-0 run to close the gap to just one at 18-17 after a huge block from Corrado and O'Brien to force an Oregon timeout.
 
The teams traded points again before Oregon went up 20-18. A Corrado kill and a Haataja ace evened the set at 20-20. A quick kill from Erin Clark gave the Vikings their first lead of the set at 21-20. The Vikings capped a 6-0 run with a Haataja kill to set up set point at 24-21. Three straight Oregon points pulled the Ducks to within one at 24-23. Corrado came up with her biggest kill of the night to give the Vikings a 25-23 win in the third.
 
Oregon got out to a 7-3 lead before the Vikings scored three of the next four to cut the lead to 8-6 to begin the fourth. Portland State then scored three straight to cut the lead to 11-10. Three points for the Ducks increased their lead to 14-10 which forced a PSU timeout. Oregon came out of the timeout with three more to force another PSU timeout. The 8-3 run by Oregon pushed its lead to 17-10.
 
A long rally and a kill from Corrado ended the Oregon run but the Ducks increased their lead to 21-14 before Haataja and O'Brien teamed up again for another block at the net. Oregon was finally able to pull away as the Ducks took the fourth set 25-16 to take the match 3-1. Oregon's Martenne Bettendorf led all players with 12 kills.
 
Portland State will have another short turnaround as the Vikings head to Pullman, Wash. to take on Loyola Marymount and Washington State beginning Thursday, Sept. 18. The two matches at the Cougar Challenge will be the final two non-conference matches for the Vikings as they open Big Sky Conference play at Northern Arizona on Sept. 25.
 
NOTES: Kasimira "Kasi" Clark moved into fourth all-time at Portland State in career digs with 20 … She now has 1,509 and is the fourth Vikings to surpass the 1,500-plus dig mark … Attendance was 1,125 … Portland State took a set from Oregon for the first time in three meetings and the first since forcing a five-setter in 2010 … Roni LaPierre tallied her second double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs.