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PORTLAND, Ore. — A day after the Portland State volleyball team came back late in the first and second sets to sweep Long Beach State, the Beach hit back, beating the Vikings 3-1 (25-22, 25-18, 11-25, 25-20) Saturday at the new Viking Pavilion.
 
The Beach (1-2) upped their hitting percentage against the Vikings (1-2) to .272 Saturday, after hitting .123 against the Vikings last night. Additionally, with the exception of a great third set in which the Vikings hit .448, the Beach held PSU to under .250 in every set, including a mark of .109 in the fourth set when the Vikings were trying to mount a comeback.
 
Despite the end result, the Vikings showed flashes of the rhythm they hope to establish with several new pieces in key areas this season.
 
The third set was the encapsulation of that promise, as they came out of the break and dominated the Beach, 25-11. The Vikings showed a new lineup at the start of the third set, with freshman outside hitter Peyton McBride starting alongside redshirt junior middle blocker Brooke Imirie. Senior defensive specialist Haley Glass also came on in the back row for Imirie.
 
McBride was a revelation for the Vikings in the third set, as she led all players with five kills in the frame. McBride only had two kills through the first two sets of the match, but ended with five kills in both the third and fourth sets. McBride finished with 12 kills and 10 digs in the match, making her the first Viking freshman outside hitter to record a double-double since Caitlin Bettenay had 10 kills and 13 digs against Sacramento State on Nov. 5, 2016.
 
McBride's performance in the third set helped the Vikings get back in the match after a tough second set. LBSU hit .474 in the second with 21 kills against only committed three attack errors. The Vikings only committed four errors themselves, but the LBSU defense extended plays that were going down for points for the Vikings in the first set.
 
The Vikings matched the Beach in the third set, however, as they hit .448 with 15 kills against only two errors. Sophomore Maddy Reeb assisted on all 15 of the Vikings' kills in the set, and distributed those 15 kills to six different players. Reeb finished the match with a career-high 48 assists, and showed the best kill distribution of the season so far. Five different players finished with five or more kills for the Vikings Saturday, more than in either of the Vikings' first two matches of the season.
 
The Viking defense also played its best set of the match in the third, as the Vikings held the Beach to just .029 hitting in the set. The Vikings forced the Beach into eight attack errors in the set, more than LBSU had in the first two sets combined. The Vikings also recorded three total blocks in the third set, more than they had in the first two sets combined.
 
Long Beach State responded well at the start of the fourth set, as they won the first three points and held the lead for much of the set. Back-to-back kills from McBride and senior outside hitter Jenna Mullen brought the Vikings back level at 19-19 late in the match, but the Beach countered with five straight points to get a match point at 24-19. Mullen followed with her 14th kill of the match to make it 24-20, but Long Beach State's Emma Kirst responded with her seventh kill to end the match.
 
Mullen finished with her second straight double-double with 14 kills and a career-high 13 digs in the match. Mullen, who had 15 kills and 12 digs in the Vikings' match against Boise State earlier in the day, had never finished with double-doubles in back-to-back matches before. Mullen had only ever recorded two double-doubles in her first three years as a Viking – a total she matched between the Vikings' two matches Saturday.
 
The Vikings play their first road match of the season Tuesday, as they head down I-5 for a match against Oregon at 7 p.m. in Eugene, Ore.
 
Match Notes: The Vikings fall to 2-3 all-time against Long Beach State with the loss Saturday…Portland State had been 2-0 against the Beach since the 1980s before losing Saturday…Mullen had two service aces in the match, keeping her aces per set average at 0.27 and tying her for eighth all-time in the Division I history of the program.