Complete Release in PDF Format

FIRST PITCH
     The Vikings hit the road for the fourth-straight week to start the season. This time, they head to Nashville, Tenn. for the TSU Tiger Classic (March 1-3) hosted by Tennessee State University. 
     Portland State will open the tournament against North Alabama on March 1. PSU will face host Tennessee State and East Tennessee State on March 2 before closing out the weekend against Marist and North Alabama on March 3. 
     It will be the first non-conference tournament for the Vikings outside the state of California. 
     Portland State is coming off its best weekend of the year, going 3-2 at the Amy S. Harrison Classic in Riverside, Calif. The Vikings split a pair of games against Maryland and UNLV before defeating host UC Riverside to complete the weekend. 
     The Vikings hit .305 on the weekend, led by junior Darian Lindsey, who hit .500 over the five games with a team-high six RBIs. She earned her second Big Sky Player of the Week honor for her efforts. Katie Schroeder went 2-0 on the weekend with a 3.00 ERA. Haley Schimmel earned her first career win in the Vikings' win over UNLV. 

GAME COVERAGE: All games at the TSU Tiger Classic will feature live stats. Links for all can be found on the softball schedule page on GoViks.com. 

SOCIAL MEDIA: Stay informed with Portland State Softball on social media. See below for everything related to Portland State Softball.
Twitter - @PSUViksSB
Instagram - @PSUViksSB
Facebook - @PSUViksSB

2019 NOTES
POTW HONORS: Portland State has garnered a trio of Big Sky Conference honors this season. 

• Darian Lindsey earned her second career conference POTW honor (2/11/19), she earned the final honor of 2018, after hitting .471 (8-for-17) with seven runs scored and two driven in. She closed out the week hitting safely in five-straight games, including three-straight multi-hit games. 
• Katie Schroeder picked up her first career Pitcher of the Week honor (2/18/19) after throwing a complete-game one-hitter to earn her first win as a Viking. She faced just 22 batters and threw 75 pitches in the complete game win. 
• Darian Lindsey picked up her second POTW honor of the season after leading the Vikings to a 3-2 record, while hitting .500 (9-for-18). She scored three runs, drove in six, and hit her first home run of the season. She had an OPS of 1.293 over the five games.  

FINDING THE LONG BALL: After going nine games without a home run, the Vikings blasted five over the five games at the Amy S. Harrison Classic (Feb. 22-24). The five home runs came from five different players. 

GOING STREAKING: Jessica Flanagan came into the season riding and eight-game hitting streak. She extended that to 11 games before the streak ended against Marshall (2/9). Darian Lindsey has reached base safely every game this season. After going hitless during the opening game, Lindsey has hit safely in each of the 13 games, including seven multi-hit games. 

LAYING IT DOWN: The sacrifice bunt has been a particular point of emphasis for Head Coach Meadow McWhorter and the Vikings. In 2018 the Vikings laid down 46 sacrifice bunts in 52 games (.885 per game) with Darian Lindsey leading the team with 10. Through 14 games, the Vikings have already dropped down 17 sac bunts (1.21 per game). Lindsey has two so far this season but it is junior Alexis Morrison who leads the team with five. 

EFFICIENCY: In her first start in a Portland State uniform, junior Katie Schroeder put together one of the most efficient pitching performances, despite picking up the loss. She threw 82 pitches over 6 2/3 innings against San Diego (2/8) with 61 strikes for a 74% strike percentage.