FIRST PITCH
The Vikings are int the final stretch with just two weeks left in the regular season. Portland State hits the road for its final road trip of the season with a three-game series against the North Dakota Fighting Hawks in Grand Forks, N.D.
PSU and UND open the series with a doubleheader on Friday, April 28 beginning at 3 p.m. CT/ 1 p.m. PT. The series finale is slated for Saturday, April 29 at 1 p.m. CT/ 11 a.m. PT.
ONLINE: Live stats will be available for all three games against North Dakota this weekend. Links can be found on GoViks.com.
LIVE VIDEO: A live video stream will be available for all three games at North Dakota. However, they will be for pay through UNDSports.com.
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PLAYOFF PICTURE
Portland State took a game off first-place Montana at home last weekend. Unfortunately for the Vikings, they did not get much help from the rest of the league. PSU currently sits in last place in the Big Sky with a 5-10 conference records. The good news is that the Vikings are just 0.5 games behind a three-way tie between North Dakota, Sacramento State, and Idaho State for fifth place. The Vikings face the Fighting Hawks and Hornets over the final two weeks.
SENIOR CAMPAIGNS
Senior IF's
Shae Nelson and
Celena Carrisosa have taken full advantage of their final season on the Park Blocks. Nelson leads the team with a .362 batting average for the season, while Carrisosa is hitting a team-best .375 during league action.
EXTRA INNING GAMES
For the first time since the 2015 season, the Vikings played in an extra-inning affair. Portland State and Montana went to extra innings in each of the first two games of their series with the Grizzlies taking both games in eight innings. It was the first time since the 2013 season that the Vikings played back-to-back extra-inning games, they played three straight at Northern Colorado that season. It was the first time since the 1997 season that the Vikings played back-to-back extra-inning games at home. They lost to Oregon State, 2-1 in eight innings before coming back and winning 3-2 in game two of the doubleheader in 13 innings.
BACK-TO-BACK GEMS
Sophomore RHP
Alyssa Burk put together her best two pitching performances of the season in the final two games of the series against Montana. In her two starts against the Grizzlies, Burk allowed three runs, two earned, over 15 innings. She allowed just eight hits and struck out nine batters in each game. During the Montana series, she posted a 1-1 record and a 0.89 ERA, lowering her season ERA by 1.44 points.
HOME COOKIN'
The Vikings have been two different teams during Big Sky Conference play, one at home and one on the road. On the road they are 1-5 with a 12.70 team ERA after allowing 64 runs, 52 earned, over 28 2/3 innings. At home, the pitching staff turns into a completely different squad. They are 4-5 with a 2.75 ERA after allowing just 31 runs, 24 earned, over 61 innings.
SERIES WIN
Portland State picked up its first Big Sky series win of the season, taking 2-of-3 from the Northern Colorado Bears at home March 31-April1. The Vikings hit .290 as a team against the Bears but the big story was the Vikings' pitching staff. Freshman
Emma Detamore and Sophomore
Alyssa Burk combined for a 1.84 ERA over the three games, allowing just five earned runs over 19.0 innings pitched. Detamore recorded her first complete-game shutout and tallied a career-high nine strikeouts in the series opener. Burk followed with a complete game win of her own in game two to take the series.
4 FOR SHAE
Senior IF
Shae Nelson posted the team's first four-hit game of the season, going a perfect 4-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, and a run batted in against Seton Hall. She added her second four-hit game of the year, going 4-for-4 with a run scored and two driven in against Northern Colorado (3/31).
FIRST WIN
Portland State picked up its first win of the season with a 4-3 win over Rhode Island in the final game of the GCU Invitational on Feb. 26 in Phoenix, Ariz. Not only did the Vikings get their first win of the year, but it was the first NCAA Division I win for first-year Head Coach
Meadow McWhorter.
YOUNG SQUAD
Portland State added 11 freshman to the roster heading into the season. The 11-member freshman class is tied for the largest in the country this year.
UP NEXT
Portland State is back home for its final four games of the regular season next week. The Vikings host Oregon State for their final non-conference game of the year on Wednesday, May 5 for a 5 p.m. first pitch. PSU then hosts Sacramento State for a three-game set May 5-6.
NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING HAWKS
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Team: North Dakota is 19-28 overall on the season, 5-9 in Big Sky Conference play, and 4-2 at home. The Fighting Hawks took back-to-back conference series over Idaho State and Sacramento State before getting swept by Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colo. last week. UND is hitting .236 as a team on the year with 148 runs scored, 130 RBIs, 84 extra-base hits, and is 35-for-38 in stolen base attempts.
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Hitting: Senior OF Rachael Waynick leads the team with a .328 batting average and a .381 on-base percentage. She has scored 17 runs, and driven in 12. Kaylin VanDomelen is second on the team with a .317 batting average and 24 RBIs. She leads the team with 14 doubles and seven home runs.
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Pitching: VanDomelen leads the team with a 10-14 record on the season and a 1.83 ERA. She has allowed 64 runs, 37 earned, over 141 1/3 innings pitched. She has walked only 48 batters and struck out 147.
vs. NORTH DAKOTA
All-Time: Portland State is 10-3 all-time against North Dakota since the 2011 season. The Vikings won five-straight to start the series before dropping a pair of games at home in 2014. Portland State swept the series in 2015 before taking 2-of-3 last season.
Last Season: The Vikings took the series, 2-1, at home last season. They opened the series with back-to-back shutouts (8-0, 5-0) before dropping the series finale 9-3. The Vikings hit .333 for the series and posted a 2.58 ERA.
