MISSOULA, Mont. — Road woes and a short roster foiled the Portland State volleyball team again Saturday night, as the Vikings lost 3-1 (25-12, 18-25, 25-23, 25-20) to Montana at Dahlberg Arena.
 
The Vikings (8-13, 4-6 Big Sky) fell to 1-5 on the road in Big Sky matches this season, and weren't helped by being without leading blocker Jordan White. Still, the Vikings shook off a tough first set to tie the match at one set apiece, but the Grizzlies (3-18, 2-8 Big Sky) led for much of the third and fourth sets while closing out the match.
 
"When we are determined, and play together, we have the ability to compete with anyone in the conference. We didn't get enough quality production offensively tonight, and yet I thought we had good looks. We have to be more opportunistic on the pins," head coach Michael Seemann said afterwards.
 
The Vikings had 12 or more kills in every set after the opening frame, but the error bug cost the Vikings as they recorded 27 in the match. Montana, meanwhile, recorded 54 kills while outhitting the Vikings .215-to-.109.
 
It looked like things turned the Vikings' way after they put a tough first set behind them by beating the Grizzlies 25-18 in the second. The Vikings recorded 12 kills on .206 hitting in the second set, after recording only six kills in the first set. The Viking defense also forced the Grizzlies into 10 attack errors while holding them to .024 hitting, after the Grizzlies hit .429 in the first.
 
Momentum was certainly on the Vikings' side, too, as they won 13 of the final 16 points in the set, turning a 15-12 deficit into a 25-18 set win.
 
The Vikings jumped out to a 10-7 lead at the start of the third set, but Montana seized the momentum from there and held it for the rest of the match. A 5-0 Montana run gave the Grizzlies a 13-11 lead, while another 4-0 run a little later gave the Grizzlies a 20-15 lead.
 
Senior Toni McDougald saved two straight set points with back-to-back kills for the Vikings, while redshirt sophomore Parker Webb saved a third with a kill that made it 24-23. The Vikings conceded on the fourth set point against them, however, to fall behind two sets to one.
 
The Grizzlies led the entire way in the fourth set, jumping out to a 6-2 lead and never letting the Vikings closer than two points the rest of the way.
 
Individually, McDougald led the Vikings with 15 kills, and was the only Viking to record double-digit kills in the match. Webb and freshman Jasmine Powell followed McDougald with eight kills each, while junior Maddy Reeb tied her career high for the second straight match with seven kills.
 
Freshman libero Ellie Snook led all players with 27 digs, the second straight match in which she's set a new career high for a four-set match.
 
Freshman setter Caroline Dragani was a dig away from a double-double with 33 assists and nine digs.
 
The Vikings will welcome a return home, where they are 4-2 in Big Sky play. Five of the Vikings' final eight matches of the regular season come at home, starting next weekend when the Vikings host Eastern Washington and Idaho.
 
The Vikings open the homestand against Eastern Washington Thursday, Oct. 31, at 7 p.m. (PT).
 
Match Notes: The Vikings fell to 51-18 all time against Montana with Saturday's loss…The Vikings drop to 27-16 in the Big Sky series between them and Montana…Powell's eight kills were her most since she had 18 kills in the Vikings' five-set win over Southern Utah on Oct. 5.