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FIRST PITCH
After playing its first month on the road, the Portland State softball team finally returns home to open its long-awaited home slate with a mid-week non-conference doubleheader against the Toledo Rockets on Wednesday, March 7 at the Gordon Faber Recreation Complex. First pitch of game one is set for 3 p.m. PT.
The Vikings are coming off a disappointing but encouraging weekend at the Husky Classic. The Vikings went 0-5 on the week but finished with a pair of tremendous efforts against No. 11 Alabama and No. 1 Washington. The Vikings held the Crimson Tide to just three runs but struggled offensively and could not come up with a timely hit to get them on the board.
In their Husky Classic finale against the top ranked team in the nation, the Vikings led early after taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth. Washington came back to take the lead in the bottom half before tacking on a pair of unearned runs to win 4-1.
Over final two games against ranked opponents, the Vikings had a 2.33 team earned run average, while holding both potent offenses to just .213 hitting at the plate.
Situational hitting hurt the Vikings over the two games. The Vikings went 2-for-18 with runners in scoring position against the Crimson Tide and Huskies and were 1-for-16 with two outs.
ONLINE: Live stats will be available for both games against Toledo. Links are available on the Softball schedule page at GoViks.com.
LIVE VIDEO: A live video stream will be available for all home games played on Field 4 (dirt) at the Gordon Faber Recreation Complex this season. If, due to inclement weather the games are moved to the turf field, there will be no live stream. Links are available on the Softball schedule page at GoViks.com.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Stay informed with Portland State Softball on social media. See below for everything related to Portland State Softball.
Twitter - @PSUViksSB
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UP NEXT: After their quick doubleheader against Toledo, the Vikings hit the road once again for five games at the UNLV Rebel Classic. They will take on New Mexico State for the third time this season before facing DePaul. Portland State will take on host UNLV twice with another game against No. 1 Washington in between.
SHOWING IMPROVEMENT: Despite going 0-5 at the Husky Classic, the Vikings are continuing to show improvement, expectantly in the circle. Over the last five games, Portland State dropped its team ERA over a full point facing some of toughest competition in the country, including two top ranked teams. Against No. 11 Alabama and No. 1 Washington, the Vikings allowed just seven runs, four earned, over 12 innings pitched (2.33 ERA).
SCHEDULE ADDITION: Portland State has added a home doubleheader against Boise State on Tuesday, March 27 beginning at 12 p.m. PT.
GOING DEEP: After having the worst home run per game average in the nation a year ago, there has been an infusion of power this season. The Vikings have blasted 10 long balls, which is tied for the most in the Big Sky Conference. Six of the 10 homers have been hit by first-year players, led by
Darian Lindsey's team-best three homers. Freshman
Rachel Menlove has blasted a pair home runs which has made her a mainstay in the Vikings lineup either behind the play or as the designated player.
FOUR DINGERS: Portland State hit four home runs, all solo and all by different hitters, in their 6-5 win over New Mexico State (2/24). It was the most home runs in a single game since the Vikings hit five against Hawaii in 2014.
FRESH ARM: After not throwing over the first week of the season, RHP
Emma Detamore made her season debut by allowing one unearned run on two hits over three complete innings against New Mexico State (2/23). She went 0-1 in three appearances and allowed five earned runs over 11 1/3 innings. She threw her first complete game of the season, allowing three runs, two earned, against No. 11 Alabama in a losing effort.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT: SO IF
Darian Lindsey has had a tremendous impact on the Portland State roster in a short amount of time on the Park Blocks. She opened her PSU career with a 2-hit 3-RBI performance against Sam Houston State in a win. She leads the team in slugging percentage (.688) and runs scored (8), it tied for the team lead in hits (10), home runs (3), and total bases (20), and is second in batting average (.364) and on base percentage (.440).
OPENING DAY WIN: Portland State picked up an 8-2 win over Sam Houston State to open the season. It was the first win to open the season for the Vikings since they opened the season with a 9-7 win over Nevada in 2015. Portland State is 4-6 in its last 10 games to start the season.
GRAND SALAMI TIME: JR C
Kaela Morrow became the first Viking since Brittany Hendrickson in 2014 to hit a grand slam. Morrow came up with the bases loaded in her first at bat of the season and hit her first home run in the top of the first against Sam Houston State.
CAREER DAY: JR C
Kaela Morrow started the season off with a career day. She went 2-for-4 with a run scored, her first career home run, which just happened to be a grand slam, and a career-high 5 RBIs. She became the first Viking since Alex Flores in 2016 to record five RBIs in a game.
COMPLETE GAMES: JR RHP
Alyssa Burk started the 2018 season right where she ended in 2017. She opened the year with a complete-game win over Sam Houston State. She allowed just two earned runs on two hits, she walked four and struck out five. It was her ninth-consecutive complete game, dating back to last season. She closed out the 2017 season with eight-straight compete games in Big Sky Conference play, going 3-5 in the process.
THE ROSTER
Portland State has a very young roster again in 2018 with 18 underclassmen (7 freshmen and 11 sophomores).The Vikings return 12 letterwinners from a year ago, including a pair of pitchers. They add 10 newcomers, including a trio of sophomore transfers.
BIG SKY TOURNAMENT
The Big Sky Conference Championship will be held May 10-12 in Ogden, Utah. It will be hosted by Weber State due to the Wildcat's regular season championship in 2017. Six teams will qualify for the double-elimination tournament with the winner earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
