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Portland State University Athletics

PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS
Rachel Menlove
Megan Connelly
2
Southern Utah SUU 5-27, 3-8 BSC
6
Winner Portland State PSU 15-24, 4-6 BSC
Southern Utah SUU
5-27, 3-8 BSC
2
Final
6
Portland State PSU
15-24, 4-6 BSC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Southern Utah SUU 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 2
Portland State PSU 0 0 1 2 1 2 X 6 8 0

W: Parrish, Serafine (2-7) L: LILLY, Hannah (1-9)

1
Southern Utah SUU 5-28, 3-9 BSC
8
Winner Portland State PSU 16-24, 5-6 BSC
Southern Utah SUU
5-28, 3-9 BSC
1
Final
8
Portland State PSU
16-24, 5-6 BSC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Southern Utah SUU 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 0
Portland State PSU 1 0 1 0 0 6 X 8 9 0

W: Burk, Alyssa (4-6) L: SORENSEN, Sydni (1-7)

Game Recap: Softball | | Jackson Wagner

Vikings Sweep Thunderbirds, Rise Four Spots in Big Sky Standings

In a weekend of work Portland State has successfully pulled itself from the bottom of the Big Sky and into contention for a postseason bye. That is how competitive the conference has been so far in 2019, and how important the Vikings' sweep of Southern Utah this weekend could prove to be in the long run.

The Vikings (16-24/5-6 BSC) defeated the Thunderbirds in a pair of games on Saturday to move into a tie with Idaho State for third place in the conference. PSU entered the weekend in seventh place, giving itself some room to breathe with two weeks remaining in the season. The top six teams will qualify, and if Portland State continues to play like it did during the weekend set they shouldn't have a problem making it to Sacramento.

All three facets of the game came together for the Vikings in a dominant series. After an extra inning win on Friday that was closer than it should have been, the Vikings took advantage of runners in scoring position, controlled the game inside the circle and played clean defense en route to 6-2 and 8-1 wins.

Perhaps most importantly, the pitching staff came together for three complete performances. The Vikings threw a different starter in every game, and in all three they delivered with complete game performances. The Vikings limited a Southern Utah that scored 24 runs in three games last week to just five this weekend.

"I was very proud of our pitching staff," head coach Meadow McWhorter said. "They did this weekend what we have known they can do, but it has been getting them all to be on at the same time. Katie (Schroeder) got us going, showing a lot of confidence in the circle. Serafine (Parrish) threw great, especially bouncing back from inning one. Then Alyssa (Burk) came out and did what she does, even getting through a shaky inning and showing how resilient she is inside the circle.

"That is the key to us winning games because we know we are going to put up runs and we've got a good defense, but the key, consistently, is what they're doing in the circle," McWhorter said.

Offensively, the Vikings just kept putting up the numbers that they have in the recent weeks. They hit .318 as a team, scoring 17 runs over the three game set. Tayler Gunesch, who moved into the cleanup spot this weekend, delivered by hitting .600 with three RBIs and scoring three runs.

Darian Lindsey stayed hot, hitting .500 for the weekend with a home run and several other hits that nearly left the park. Jessica Flanagan hit .455 with four RBIs and the game-winner on Friday. Rachel Menlove also hit over .400, ripping a solo homer Saturday.

"One of the key focuses going into the weekend was being disciplined at the plate, to make sure we're hitting the pitches that we want to hit and not the ones that Southern Utah wanted us to hit. I was very proud of our hitters because many of them went very deep into counts so you could see that discipline. They were fighting pitches off until they got what they wanted and we did a much better job today of not leaving runners on."

Game One - Portland State 6, Southern Utah 2

In an interesting and unique set of circumstances, the game began today where it left off on Friday when rain started to fall down heavily. The Thunderbirds started Saturday's contest with runners on second and third with just one out, immediately backing starter Serafine Parrish and the Vikings up against a wall.

And the Thunderbirds capitalized off the early opportunity.

In the second at-bat of the day, Mikelle Magalogo doubled into left center to score both runners and give Southern Utah an early lead. Portland State found its first run of the day in the bottom of the third, capitalizing off a single hit and scoring on a sacrifice fly from Flanagan to cut the lead in half.

The momentum then shifted in the fourth inning. Portland State put two runners on by way of an SUU error and a hit-by-pitch. Gunesch then stole third, with Doyle taking second in the process, setting the stage for Alexis Morrison. She went opposite field for a two-RBI double, giving the Vikings the 3-2 lead.

They scored again in the fifth inning after hitting three singles. Gunesch provided the RBI, pushing the lead to 4-2. In the bottom of the sixth they did it again, stringing together three straight hits and a sacrifice fly to score two more runs. All told, the Vikings scored in four straight innings, building the the score up to its eventual 6-2 final.

Parrish responded well after the opening inning, throwing a complete game and allowing just four hits. She picked up her second win of the season in the process. Flanagan went 1-for-2, but a pair of sacrifice flies gave her two RBIs in the game. Morrison went 1-for-3 and also had a pair of RBIs.

Game Two - Portland State 8, Southern Utah 1

The Vikings controlled the final game of the series from the start, but it wasn't until they put up a six-spot in the bottom of the sixth inning that they felt fully comfortable. Still, Alyssa Burk dealt the entire game, allowing just two hits in a complete game effort that included eight strikeouts.

Portland State chased Southern Utah's starter from the game in the first inning, and would force the Thunderbirds to throw four different players inside the circle in the six innings. Rachel Menlove provided the first run of the game with a solo shot into left field that was a no-doubter.

Burk retired the Thunderbirds in order in the first two innings but hit a snag in the third. She lost her control slightly, walking three straight batters and allowing a run to score on a wild pitch. Still, Burk hadn't allowed a hit and worked her way out of the jam with back-to-back strikeouts.

The offense got the lead back for her in the bottom half of that inning. Lindsey doubled and advanced to third on a groundout. She scored on an RBI single into left by Gunesch, putting the Vikings ahead 2-1.

Neither side created much offense over the next couple innings, but the Vikings broke the game open in the sixth. Gunesch led off with a single and stole a base, but a walk would fill in the bag behind her. The Thunderbirds then tried to cut down the lead runner on grounder, but the shortstop covering third didn't get her foot on the bag and the bases were all of a sudden loaded.

Kaela Morrow, a pinch-hitter, delivered an RBI single through the left side. Marissa Bruno followed that up with another single, scoring another Viking run and pushing the lead to three. The Vikings would draw three bases loaded walks for three more runs and Flanagan added in a single to make it 8-1 Vikings. They just missed out on reaching the eight run lead required for a run-rule, but Burk finished off her performance in the seventh for the Viking win.''

Burk was dominant again at home. Last time she faced a conference opponent in Hillsboro she finished as the Big Sky Player of the Week. She followed in a similar path on Saturday, but it was also partially a product of how good the other pitchers on the Viking staff had been going into the series finale.

"I knew our game plan was to hammer them down (in the zone) because they are a good offensive club and to really use our defense," McWhorter said. "Katie and Serafine did a really good job and we saw some really good defensive plays behind them. Then that set up Alyssa perfectly because it was such a different look from what they had seen for the last 14 innings. I'm very proud, they held a great offensive team to minimal runs."

Portland State is back in action with a mid-week doubleheader against Oregon on Apr. 23 in Eugene. They then hit the road for a Big Sky series against Sacramento State on April. 26 and 27. They close out the season with a home series against league leaders Weber State on May 3 and 4.


 
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