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PORTLAND – Junior OH Pati Anae recorded her team-best sixth double-double of the season, but the Portland State volleyball team fell in straight sets to Southern Utah Saturday night at the Peter W. Stott Center.
 
Anae posted a match-high 16 kills along with 11 digs for her second-straight double-double. Freshman OH Jenna Mullen added 15 kills for the Vikings while hitting .324 from the floor. She added six digs and a pair of blocking assists.
 
Portland State recorded more kills, assists, and digs than Southern Utah, but the Thunderbirds won the battle in hitting and at the net. The T-Birds out-hit the Vikings, .301-to-.193. They also out-blocked the Vikings, 9.0-to-4.0.
 
The match remained deadlocked through much of the first set. With the score tied at 12-12, SUU went on a 4-0 run to go up 16-12. The Vikings tried to close the gap but another run gave the Thunderbirds the 25-17 win in the first.
 
Southern Utah got out to a seven-point lead, 17-10, midway through the second set. The Vikings cut the lead to three at 22-19 but were unable to come all the way back and fell 25-21 to give the T-Birds the 2-0 lead in the match.
 
With the third tied at 18-18, Southern Utah scored two straight to go up 20-18. The teams traded points to 21-19 before three-straight by SUU gave it match point at 24-21. The Vikings staved off the first match point but could not fight off the second and fell 25-22 to drop the match in straight sets.
 
Southern Utah improved to 10-5 overall and 1-1 in Big Sky Conference play with the win, while Portland State fell to 4-10 and 0-2 with the loss.
 
Portland State hits the road next week for a pair of Big Sky Conference road matches. The Vikings begin the trip in Ogden, Utah where they'll take on the Weber State Wildcats on Thursday, Oct. 1. They will then head to Pocatello, Idaho for a Saturday, Oct. 3 matchup with Idaho State. Both matches are slated for 7 p.m. MT starts.
 
NOTES: Erin Clark came off the bench and played in all three sets after missing the last four matches … Pati Anae posted her sixth double-double with 16 kills and 11 digs.