PORTLAND – After opening its 2021 campaign with 13 road games, the Portland State softball team will finally return home, hosting its home opener against Simpson University on Wednesday (1 and 3 p.m.).
The doubleheader will be held at Hillsboro Stadium on Gordon Faber Field 4. A limited amount of fans will be allowed to sit in the outfield sections.
The Vikings will enter their home opener with a 1-12 overall record after facing eight teams in the top-25 in the opening 13 games of their season. Portland State earned its one win against Grand Canyon University (5-4) at the GCU Purple Classic on February 26.
LAST TIME OUT
Portland State will enter Wednesday coming off a tough weekend at the Husky Classic. The Vikings played both Seattle University and No. 8 Washington twice over the weekend, falling in all four contests. The Vikings' fell to Washington 8-0 on Saturday and 5-2 on Sunday. PSU was unable to take care of business against Seattle, falling 3-5 on Friday and 4-10 on Saturday.
BY THE NUMBERS
Team Batting Average: .243 (77-317)
Opponents Batting Average: .353 (120-340)
Errors/Fielding Percentage: 11 (.964)
ERA/Strikeouts/Walks: 10.87 ERA, 66 strikeouts, 51 walks
VIKING LEADERS
Batting Average –
Olivia Dean 12-32 (.375)
Home Runs –
Rachel Menlove (2)
RBI – Dean,
Maddie Thompson,
Marissa Bruno (5 each)
ERA –
Allicitie Frost (4.76)
Strikeouts –
Olivia Grey (27)
SPEED KILLS
The Vikings are 15-16 in stolen bases on the season, seeing eight of those come in the last five games. Thompson leads the way going a perfect 5-5 to open the season. Dean and Bruno have each added three.
TOP OF THE LINEUP
The top of the lineup for Portland State carried its offense this past weekend, recording a .500 average between the three of them. Dean, Thompson, and Bruno combined for 18 total hits over four games in Seattle, tallying five RBI and 6 runs scored. Thompson and Dean both enter Wednesday holding four-game hit streaks while Bruno is riding a three-game streak.
SIMPSON UNIVERSITY
Simpson University (Calif) will enter tomorrow's game on a five-game win streak, holding a 13-9 overall record. The Red Hawks offense is led by junior Meridian Enriquez (.420) and senior pitcher Sydney Moorhead who enters the week with a 2.86 ERA.
This will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
