PORTLAND, Ore. — Never count a Viking out. Down 15-8 in the first set and 21-13 in the third, the Portland State volleyball team came back to win both, keying a 3-1 (25-23, 18-25, 25-23, 25-17) victory over Gonzaga that completed a 3-0 weekend for the Vikings at the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown.
 
Sunday's late comebacks followed a reverse sweep for the Vikings Saturday, when Portland State erased an 0-2 deficit to beat North Dakota State in five sets. The Vikings hadn't completed an 0-2 comeback since 2016 before Saturday. Now, after Sunday, comebacks appear to be part of the Vikings' DNA this season.
 
"Resilient is the word that comes to mind," head coach Michael Seemann said of his team afterwards. "We found ourselves down in every set and we just started making plays."
 
The Vikings (6-5) trailed by at least five points in every set they won, as they also trailed 10-5 in the fourth set in addition to their seven- and eight-point deficits in the first and third sets, respectively.
 
The Vikings didn't lead at all in the first set until Parker Webb gave them set point at 24-23 with a kill. Similarly, the Vikings scored the first point of the third set, but then didn't lead again until a solo block from Zoe McBride gave them set point at 24-23. The Vikings' comeback in the fourth set didn't come as late, as they took the lead for good with an 8-1 run after trailing 13-9 earlier in the set.
 
The Vikings' runs at the end of sets tell the story of the comeback. The Vikings won 11 of the final 15 points in the first set after falling behind 19-14. The Vikings then won 12 of the final 14 points in the third set after trailing 21-13. In the fourth set, the Vikings won 16 of the final 20 points as they ran away with it after the Zags took the early lead.
 
"It felt like when each player made a point-scoring play or a great dig, it kind of fueled everybody else and gave them a little more confidence. I liked that a lot. We let each other's success fuel us and get us out of our own slumps," Seemann said afterwards.
 
One of those momentum swings came as Jasmine Powell and Teniyah Leuluai checked in at the 15-12 mark of the third set. Powell, who hasn't seen as much time this season due to nagging injury issues, put down an emphatic kill on her first attempt of the day that made it 16-13 Zags. A few points after that kill, the Vikings strung together a 7-0 run that leveled the set at 22-all. Gonzaga snapped the run with a kill from McKenna Marshall, but followed with a service error that tied it up again. McBride blocked Gonzaga's Zoe Thiros on the next point, while Webb followed with a kill to close out the set.
 
The 7-0 run in the third set came on Ally Wada's serve, and the Vikings made up ground on her serve again in the fourth set. Powell recorded her fourth kill of the match to start the run, while the Vikings followed with three more points on Wada's serve. The Zags snapped the run to take the lead back at 14-13, but the Vikings immediately followed with another 4-0 run that gave them the lead for good.
 
Gonzaga got back within one at 17-16, but Genevieve Florig snapped the Zags' mini-run with a kill from the middle. Webb and McBride followed with back-to-back kills, while a combo block between Webb and Ashleigh Barto made it 21-16. The Vikings closed out the match with another 4-0 run – their fourth of the set – that Webb capped with a service ace.
 
It was appropriate that Webb record the final point, as she led the Vikings with 19 kills on .340 hitting while putting the finishing touches on a standout weekend. Webb has had several strong weekends in a row, having also made the PDX Classic All-Tournament Team last weekend, as well as the Long Beach State All-Tournament Team the week before. Webb finished this weekend averaging 4.67 kills, 2.33 digs, 0.92 blocks, 0.42 aces and 5.58 points per set while hitting .385 at the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown.
 
"She's been doing that in practice since day one," Seemann said of Webb's big weekend. "She's elevated her game, big time. And I think she's starting to lock in a little bit more on the defensive part. She's blocking, she's playing defense, she's attacking well, she's getting us out of big points…it's just huge to have someone like that with that experience. She's kind of our anchor."
 
McBride put together her own strong weekend, recording double-doubles in all three matches at the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown. Sunday's match featured McBride's most impressive double-double to date, as she set season highs for kills (15) and digs (19) while hitting .224 and adding two service aces.
 
McBride exemplified the mental toughness for the Vikings Sunday, as she had three attack errors in the first seven points of the match, but then only had one the rest of the way.
 
"Zoe is playing really well. She took on a bigger role today in serve receive, and I think she had her best attacking day today. Her decision making is getting a lot better, and she's being a little more opportunistic," Seemann said of McBride.
 
Makayla Lewis and Ally Wada also had double-doubles Sunday, after both players also posted double-doubles in Saturday's five-set win over North Dakota State. Lewis finished with 10 kills and 14 digs against the Zags Sunday, while Wada totaled 40 assists and 11 digs. Junior libero Ellie Snook nearly joined them with her first double-double of the season, as she recorded 28 digs and nine assists against the Zags.
 
The Vikings will now turn their attention to Big Sky play, which gets underway next weekend. The Vikings face a tough conference opener, as they travel to take on the defending Big Sky champions in Weber State (Sept. 23, 5 p.m. PT).
 
But after Sunday, teams should know to never count a Viking out.
 
Match Notes: The Vikings improved to 12-9 all-time against Gonzaga with Sunday's win…The Vikings have won five of their last six matches after Sunday…The Vikings have hit .256 as a team over their last six matches, a far cry from their first five matches of the season when they were hitting .084 as a team.