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PORTLAND, Ore. — Fresh off a breakout, 3-0 win over Montana on Thursday, the Portland State volleyball team backslid a bit Saturday, losing 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-22) to Montana State at the Viking Pavilion in a match presented by Les Schwab.
 
The Vikings (3-19, 2-8 Big Sky), which had set a seasonal best with a .279 hitting percentage Thursday, hit just .127 in the match, and just .085 after the first set.
 
The Bobcats (9-12, 4-6 Big Sky), meanwhile, put some distance between themselves and the Vikings in the Big Sky standings with the win. The Bobcats lead the Vikings by two games now, and hold the tiebreaker after sweeping the Vikings this season.
 
The Vikings controlled the early part of the match, as they took an 18-14 on a kill from freshman Peyton McBride. The Bobcats disrupted the Vikings flow from there, however, as they won the next point on a combo block from Hannah Scott and Serena Caspersen, and then tied the match at 18-18 with three straight service aces. The Bobcats held the momentum for the rest of the set and eventually won, 25-23, on back-to-back kills from Evi Wilson and Scott.
 
The Bobcats carried the momentum over much of the second set, and eventually took a five-point lead late at 22-17. The Vikings nearly stole the set from there, though, as they won six of the next seven points – three off kills from senior Katy Wilson – to tie the match at 23-23. The Bobcats won the final two points on a pair of PSU attack errors, however, giving them another 25-23 set victory.
 
Neither team led by more than two points in the third set until the very end when Montana State pulled out the set, 25-22.
 
Wilson led the Vikings with nine kills in the match, and also led the way with five blocks (one solo, four assists). Sophomore setter Maddy Reeb led the Vikings with 26 assists, while senior defensive specialist Hadley Heck led the team with 14 digs.
 
The Vikings hit the road next week for a pair of matches at Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. The Vikings open the weekend against Southern Utah Thursday, Oct. 25, with a match at 6:30 p.m. (MT) in Cedar City, Utah.
 
Match Notes: The Vikings fell to 43-22-1 all time against Montana State with Saturday's loss…The Vikings dropped to 23-20 in the Big Sky series between them and the Bobcats with the loss…The last time the Bobcats beat the Vikings in Portland was Oct. 16, 2004…Wilson's four block assists in the match gave her 253 in her career, moving her up to eighth all time in Division I school history…Wilson also ranks eighth all time in Division I program history with 302 total blocks in her career.