FIRST SERVE

Comebacks have become such a part of the Portland State volleyball team's DNA that a first-set loss is met with a shrug. Four of the Vikings' seven wins this season have come when the team has dropped the opening set, including last Saturday, when the Vikings won three straight after losing their opener against Idaho State.
 
That competitive fire should serve the Vikings well as they remain on the road for a second straight week to open their Big Sky schedule. After splitting their weekend at Weber State and Idaho State, the Vikings face Idaho and Eastern Washington on back-to-back days. The Vikings open the weekend at Idaho Thursday, before hopping over to Eastern Washington for a match Friday. Both matches start at 6 p.m.
 
The Vikings' comeback against Idaho State followed a 3-0 weekend at the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown, Sept. 17-19, that featured two major comebacks. The Vikings erased an 0-2 deficit for the first time since 2016 while beating North Dakota State in five sets on Sept. 18. The team then followed up with a 3-1 win over Gonzaga the next day that featured late comebacks in the first and third sets.
 
The Vikings trailed by at least five points in every set they won against the Zags, but used late runs to erase those big deficits. 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 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 an early 10-5 lead.
 
The offense and defense have been solid for the Vikings during their run of comebacks. Offensively, the Vikings flipped a switch a few weeks ago after they hit just .084 through their first five matches of the season. Since then, the Vikings have hit .238 as a team while averaging 13.76 kills and 12.97 assists per set over their last eight matches. The resurgence on offense means the Vikings now rank second in the Big Sky for both kills per set (12.6) and assists per set (11.7) this season.
 
Parker Webb and Makayla Lewis have led the Viking offense during its turnaround. Webb, who was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week following the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown last week, has averaged 4.00 kills per set while hitting .323 over the Vikings' last eight matches. Lewis has averaged 3.55 kills, 2.82 digs and 0.30 aces per set over the last eight matches, and goes into this weekend with four straight double-doubles.
 
Webb and Lewis now both rank in the top 10 of the Big Sky for kills per set, with Webb third at 3.59 k/s and Lewis eighth at 3.14 k/s. Webb also ranks sixth in the Big Sky for hitting percentage (.287), making her the only player in the conference this season to rank in the top 10 for both kills per set and hitting percentage.
 
Setter Ally Wada has served as lead conductor of the Viking offense, as she's averaged 10.09 assists and 2.55 digs per set over the team's last eight matches. That surge means Wada now ranks second in the Big Sky with 9.04 assists per set, behind only two-time All-Big Sky first-team selection Daisy Schultz of Northern Colorado.
 
Defensively, the Vikings have had a player be named Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week during each of the past three weeks. Snook earned the first and third of those honors, while Genevieve Florig picked up the middle one. The fact that Snook, a libero, and Florig, a middle blocker, have traded off the award shows the quality the Vikings have defensively both at the net and in the back row.
 
Snook earned her latest honor after averaging 6.63 digs per set across both matches last weekend. Snook has recorded at least 25 digs in four straight matches, while she has at least 20 digs in six of the Vikings' last eight matches.
 
Her strong recent player has given Snook a commanding lead for digs per set within the Big Sky Conference. She averages 5.45 digs per set after last weekend, which is more than a full dig and a half per set more than the No. 2-ranked player in the conference, Montana's Sarina Moreno at 3.91.
 
Florig, meanwhile, ranks sixth in the Big Sky with 1.02 blocks per set. Ashleigh Barto actually led the Vikings in blocks last weekend, though, as she averaged 1.13 b/s against Weber State and Idaho State.
 
Defense has been a sore spot for Idaho this season, as they head into the weekend last in the Big Sky in opponent hitting percentage (.261) and digs per set (11.5). The Vandals have talent on their team, however, as they returned two-time All-Big Sky second-team selection Nicole Ball at middle blocker. Ball ranks fifth in the Big Sky with a .296 hitting percentage, while senior Allison Munday ranks sixth in the conference for kills per set (3.33), as well as third in aces per set (0.43).
 
The Vandals dropped their opening two Big Sky matches, falling in both matches of the always-difficult road trip to Northern Arizona and Southern Utah. The Eagles split their trip to those schools, as they SUU in five sets last Thursday, before losing in three sets to Northern Arizona last Saturday.
 
The Eagles represent a strong offensive team, as they rank fourth in the Big Sky in both kills per set (12.33) and aces per set (1.51). The Eagles also rank fourth in digs per set (13.64), though they rank last in the conference with only 1.41 blocks per set as a team.
 
Individually, Ashlyn Blotzer and Sadie Bacon rank second and fourth in the Big Sky for hitting percentage, averaging .329 and .301, respectively. In terms of kills, no one player has dominant numbers – Maya McClellan leads the Eagles with 2.45 kills per set – but the Eagles have an array of weapons as five different players average at least 1.74 kills per set.
 
The Vikings dropped two five-set matches to the Eagles last season, which kept the Vikings out of the Big Sky tournament while putting the Eagles in the field for the first time since 2016. The Vikings will then be looking for a measure of revenge when they face them again Friday. And considering the teeth the Vikings have shown in their recent comebacks, that's not to be taken lately.
 

MATCH #1: PORTLAND STATE (7-6, 1-1) vs. IDAHO (3-8, 0-2)

LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Thursday, Sept. 30, 6 p.m. PT, Moscow, Idaho (Memorial Gym)
SCOUTING IDAHO: The Idaho Vandals lost their first two Big Sky matches last weekend, as they faced the always-difficult road trip to Northern Arizona and Southern Utah. The Vandals opened the weekend with a 3-0 loss to NAU Thursday, then fell in four sets to Southern Utah Saturday. The losses came after the Vandals went 3-6 in non-conference play during which they went 1-2 every weekend. The Vandals share two common non-conference opponents with the Vikings, as both teams faced the University of Portland and Grand Canyon University. The Vikings beat both of those opponents (UP, 3-1; GCU, 3-2) while the Vandals lost to both (UP, 0-3; GCU, 1-3). Statistically, the Vandals rank last in the Big Sky in both opponent hitting percentage (.261) and digs per set (11.5). Offensively, the Vandals rank ninth in hitting percentage (.151), and 10th in both kills per set (10.8) and aces per set (1.30). The Vandals' best statistical rank within the conference is a tie between assists (9.85) and blocks (1.85) per set, where they rank eighth in both categories. Individually, Nicole Ball – a two-time All-Big Sky second-team selection at middle blocker – ranks fifth in the Big Sky with a .296 hitting percentage. Additionally, senior Allison Munday ranks sixth in the Big Sky in kills per set (3.33), while also ranking third in aces per set (0.43). Setter Peyten Ely and libero Alaina Lacey also each rank fifth in their specialized category, as Ely averages 8.18 assists per set while Lacey averages 3.65 digs per set. Kennedy Warren, an All-Big Sky first-team selection last season, transferred to the University of Houston before the start of the year.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Vikings lead the all-time series between them and the Vandals, 17-9. It's been a more even series since the Vandals rejoined the Big Sky in 2014, however. The Vandals lead the Big Sky series, 6-4. The Vikings haven't beaten the Vandals in Moscow since they swept them on Oct. 21, 2017.
 

MATCH #2: PORTLAND STATE (7-6, 1-1) vs. EASTERN WASHINGTON (5-5, 1-1)

LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Friday, Oct. 1, 6 p.m. PT, Cheney, Wash. (Reese Court)
SCOUTING EASTERN WASHINGTON: The Eastern Washington Eagles earned a tough road split at Northern Arizona and Southern Utah last weekend. The Eagles opened with a five-set win over Southern Utah last Thursday, before falling in three sets to Northern Arizona on Saturday. The Eagles also split their eight non-conference matches, going 4-4 with wins over the University of Portland (3-1 on Aug. 28), St. Thomas (3-1 on Sept. 3), Prairie View A&M (3-0 on Sept. 6) and Seattle University (3-2 on Sept. 18). The Vikings also beat the University of Portland, 3-1, earlier this season, and both teams played Grand Canyon University, as well, with the Vikings beat theing Lopes in five sets on Sept. 10, while the Eagles fell in three sets in their first match of the season on Aug. 27. Statistically, the Eagles rank well offensively within the Big Sky Conference, coming in fourth in both kills per set (12.33) and aces per set (1.51). The Eagles also rank fourth in digs per set (13.64), though they rank last in the conference with only 1.41 blocks per set as a team. Individually, Ashlyn Blotzer and Sadie Bacon rank second and fourth in the Big Sky for hitting percentage, averaging .329 and .301, respectively. In terms of kills, no one player has dominant numbers – Maya McClellan leads the Eagles with 2.45 kills per set – but the Eagles have an array of weapons as five different players average at least 1.74 kills per set. The Eagles have also spread the responsibilities defensively, as libero Makenna Collins leads them with 3.00 digs per set, but seven different players average at least 1.50 digs per set. The Eagles do not have a dominant middle blocker, at least statistically, as Bacon leads them with 0.66 blocks per set. Blotzer returned to the Eagles this season after earning All-Big Sky second-team honors last season, when the Eagles qualified for the Big Sky tournament for the first time since 2016.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Vikings lead the all-time series between them and the Eagles, 32-29. The Vikings had won 18 of their last 19 against the Eagles until last season, when they dropped two five-set matches on back-to-back days during the pandemic-altered 2021 winter season.
 

STORYLINES/STREAKS/RECORDS

• The Vikings have won six of their last eight matches, including five of six at the Vikings' two home tournaments that preceded Big Sky play last weekend.
• Four of the Vikings' seven wins this season have come in matches where they dropped the opening set. The fourth such win came last Saturday, as the Vikings won three straight after dropping the opener to Idaho State. The Vikings also recorded their first comeback from an 0-2 deficit since 2016, with a 3-2 win over North Dakota State on Sept. 18.
• Ellie Snook picked up her second Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honor in the past three weeks after totaling 53 digs for an average of 6.63 digs per set in the Vikings' matches at Weber State and Idaho State. The Vikings have had a player earn Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors in each of the past three weeks, as Genevieve Florig picked up the honor in the week between Snook's two honors.
• Parker Webb is the only player in the Big Sky Conference to rank in the top 10 for both kills per set and hitting percentage. Webb ranks highly in both categories, too, as she stands third in kills per set (3.59) and sixth in hitting percentage (.287).
• Ellie Snook holds a commanding lead in the Big Sky Conference for digs per set. Snook stands atop the conference with 5.45 digs per set, which is a full dig and a half per set more than the No. 2-ranked player in the conference, Montana's Sarina Moreno. Snook also ranks 12th nationally in digs per set.
• Makayla Lewis has recorded four straight double-doubles heading into this weekend. Lewis led the Vikings with 17 kills in both matches last weekend, moving her back into the Big Sky top 10 for kills per set. Lewis now ranks eighth in the Big Sky with 3.14 kills per set after last weekend.
• Ally Wada has moved up to second in the Big Sky with 9.04 assists per set, as she's orchestrated a renewed Viking offense the past three weekends. Through the team's first five matches, the Vikings ranked last in the Big Sky with a team hitting percentage of just .084. Since then, the Vikings have hit .238 as a team while Wada has averaged 10.09 assists and 2.55 digs per set in the Vikings' last eight matches.
• Genevieve Florig ranks sixth in the Big Sky with 1.02 blocks per set. Ashleigh Barto led the Vikings last weekend, though, as she averaged 1.13 blocks per set at Weber State and Idaho State.
• The Vikings' resurgence on offense means they've moved up to second in the Big Sky in both kills (12.6) and assists (11.7) per set.
• The Vikings have more upperclassmen (10) than underclassmen (6) for the first time since 2018. It's a far cry from the team's numbers two years ago, when they had seven freshmen and nine underclassmen on their 12-player roster. The team has three fifth-year players in Genevieve Florig, Maddy Reeb and Parker Webb.
• The Vikings added six newcomers over the offseason between three true freshmen – Morgan Halady, Teniyah Leuluai and Lily Snook – and three transfers – Genevieve Florig, Makayla Lewis and Sydney Rabe. Of the transfers, Florig came in as a grad transfer from UCONN, Lewis played two years at San Jose State, while Rabe was at UW Green Bay last year but didn't play and remains a redshirt freshman. Florig joins Zoe McBride, who transferred to the Vikings before last season, as players from the Portland area who started their careers at other Division I schools before transferring back to the region.
• Lily Snook joined her sister Ellie on the Vikings' team this season. Their father, Jamie Snook, also played men's basketball at Portland State from 1996-99. Additionally, their cousin, Jake Porter, plays for the Vikings' football team, and Jake's dad played baseball at Portland State in the 1990s.
• Maddy Reeb would have exhausted her eligibility last year, but decided to come back for a fifth year after the NCAA granted all volleyball players an extra year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Reeb split time between being a setter and an outside hitter during her first four years at Portland State, but will play exclusively on the outside this season. Reeb's versatility saw her become the first Viking since 2010 to record a triple-double last year, which she did twice during the season.

 

COMEBACK VIKS

Comebacks have become part of the Vikings' DNA this season, and especially over the last two weekends. Four of the Vikings' seven wins this season have come when they lost the opening set, including last Saturday's 3-1 win over Idaho State. The Vikings also overcame an 0-2 deficit to beat North Dakota State in five sets on Sept. 18, the first time the Vikings have erased a two-set deficit since Sept. 8, 2016. The Vikings' 3-1 victory over Gonzaga on Sept. 19 also featured late comebacks in the first and third sets. The Vikings fell behind 15-8 in the first and 21-13 in the third set, only to come back and win both. Late runs fueled the Vikings' comebacks against the Zags. 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 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 an early 10-5 lead. The Vikings also dropped the opening set of their wins over Santa Clara (3-1) on Aug. 28, and Grand Canyon (3-2) on Sept. 10. The Lopes were unbeaten at the time of their match against the Vikings. The comeback gene is a fitting part of the Vikings' DNA this season, after head coach Michael Seemann introduced competition as early and as often as possible during the Vikings' fall camp in August.  
 

RESURGENT OFFENSE

Picture the makeover scene in your favorite teen comedy, and that's what happened to the Viking offense between the second and third weeks of the season. Through their first five matches, the Vikings were hitting just .084 as a team, which ranked them last in the Big Sky Conference. Since then, the Vikings have hit .238 as a team while averaging 13.76 kills and 12.97 assists per set in their last eight matches. The resurgence on offense means the Vikings now rank second in the Big Sky for both kills (12.6) and assists (11.7) per set this season. Parker Webb and Makayla Lewis have led the Viking offense during its turnaround. Webb, who was named the Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 20 following the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown, has averaged 4.00 kills per set while hitting .323 over the Vikings' last eight matches. Lewis, meanwhile, has averaged 3.55 kills, 2.82 digs and 0.30 aces per set over the last eight matches. Webb and Lewis now rank in the top 10 of the Big Sky for kills per set, with Webb third at 3.59 kills per set and Lewis eighth at 3.14 k/s. Webb also ranks sixth in the Big Sky for hitting percentage (.287), making her the only player in the conference this season to rank in the top 10 for both kills per set and hitting percentage. Zoe McBride and Gabby Hollins have also each had their moments. Hollins' came at the PDX Classic, where she had a double-double against Grand Canyon on Sept. 10 and 14 more kills in the Vikings' match against UTEP on Sept. 11. McBride, meanwhile, recorded three straight double-doubles at Les Schwab Rose City Showdown (Sept. 17-19), where she averaged 3.25 kills, 3.75 digs and 0.5 blocks per set. Setter Ally Wada is owed much of the credit for the Vikings' resurgent offense, as she's guided the Vikings while averaging 10.09 assists and 2.55 digs per set over the team's last eight matches. 
 

DEFENSE TOUGH AT THE NET, STEADY IN THE BACK

As much as the Vikings' offense has improved over the last three weeks, the Vikings owe a lot of their recent success to a defense that has produced three straight Big Sky Defensive Players of the Week between Ellie Snook (twice) and Genevieve Florig. The Vikings rank third in the Big Sky with an opponent hitting percentage of .198, having held four of their last five opponents to .177 or less. Snook has raised her level while playing in the back for the Viking defense. The junior libero has recorded at least 25 digs in the Vikings' last four matches, and averaged 6.63 digs per set last weekend while earning her second Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honor. Florig's big weekend came at the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown (Sept. 17-19), where she averaged 1.42 blocks per set while earning her Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors. Florig now ranks sixth in the Big Sky with 1.02 blocks per set this season. Ashleigh Barto led the Vikings in blocks last weekend, however, as she averaged 1.13 b/s against Weber State and Idaho State.
 

ELLIE SNOOK STANDS ALONE

Ellie Snook joined elite company within the Viking program when she was named the Big Sky Conference Libero of the Year last season. Snook wrote her name next to Kasimira Clark (2012, 2013) and Tasha Bojanic (2017) as fellow honorees, giving the program four recipients in the past nine seasons. Within this season, Snook remains in a company by herself as she holds a commanding lead within the Big Sky Conference for digs per set. Snook grew her lead to a comically large size after averaging 6.63 digs per set in the Vikings' two matches last weekend. Snook now averages 5.45 digs per set after last weekend, more than a full one and a half digs better than the No. 2-ranked player in the conference, Montana's Sarina Moreno at 3.91. Snook has extended her lead in recent weeks, as she has recorded at least 25 digs in the Vikings' last four matches. Snook's season high remains 30 digs, a benchmark she's hit twice between the Vikings' wins over Santa Clara on Aug. 28 and Grand Canyon on Sept. 10. The Vikings are 6-1 this season when Snook records at least 20 digs in a match.
 

MAKAYLA LEWIS, FROM SPARTAN TO VIKING

A transfer from San Jose State before the season, Makayla Lewis has made a seamless transition from being a Spartan to a Viking. Lewis has recorded four straight double-doubles heading into this weekend, including two last weekend when she led the Vikings with 17 kills in each match. Lewis has become a go-to player for the Vikings ever since breaking through with her new team at the PDX Classic where she made the All-Tournament Team. Over the Vikings' last eight matches, Lewis has averaged 3.55 kills, 2.82 digs, 0.39 blocks and 0.30 aces per set. Lewis' best match in that stretch came in the Vikings' five-set win over previously unbeaten Grand Canyon on Sept. 10. Lewis set a career high with 25 kills in that match, as she hit .302 against the Lopes while adding 12 digs. Lewis also had 19 kills on .333 hitting in the Vikings' four-set win over cross-town rival University of Portland on Sept. 9.
 

WEBB SLINGER

It's little wonder that the Viking offense has been performing well over the team's last eight matches. At least it isn't when you look at Parker Webb's numbers. The redshirt senior has recorded at least 13 kills in the Vikings' last eight matches, and has hit .340 or better in five of those eight matches. Webb recorded her best weekend as a Viking two weekends ago at the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown. There, Webb averaged 4.67 kills, 2.33 digs, 0.92 blocks, 0.42 aces and 5.58 points per set while hitting .385. Those numbers earned her Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week honors, the second time in her career she has been so honored. Webb also made the All-Tournament Teams at the Long Beach State Tournament and PDX Classic before that weekend. Webb's efficiency coupled with her production means she's the only player in the Big Sky to rank in the conference top 10 for both kills per set and hitting percentage. Webb ranks highly in both categories, too, as she stands third in kills per set (3.59) and sixth in hitting percentage (.287).
 

A WHOLE LOTTA WADA

Senior Ally Wada has been a walking double-double since arriving in Portland from San Francisco before last season. Wada had 11 double-doubles in 17 matches last season, and already has seven in the Vikings' first 13 matches this season. Six of Wada's seven double-doubles this season have come in the Vikings' last eight matches as she's helped key an offensive resurgence for the Vikings. Wada has led the Vikings to .238 hitting over their last eight matches, after they hit just .084 as a team in their first five. Wada's numbers have risen in that same span, as she's averaged 10.09 assists and 2.55 digs per set over the last three weekends. Wada's best match came in the Vikings' five-set win over Grand Canyon on Sept. 10. Wada set a new career high with 62 assists in that match, 11 of which came as the Vikings recorded 14 kills in the fifth set. Wada added another double-double Saturday in the Vikings' 3-1, comeback win over Idaho State. The senior setter recorded 42 assists, 12 digs and four kills as the Vikings overcame a first-set loss to beat the Bengals. Wada now ranks second in the Big Sky with 9.04 assists per set, a jump from where she was two weeks ago due to her keying an offensive resurgence. 
 

NO LONGER A MCBRIDESMAID, NOW A MCBRIDE

Three weekends ago at the PDX Classic, Zoe McBride recorded only one kill in seven sets, as she played sparingly due to lack of production. Head coach Michael Seemann said McBride did not accept that of herself, however, and responded with a great week of practice leading up to the Les Schwab Rose City Showdown. That week of work paid off in spades for McBride, who put together her best weekend of the season while recording three straight double-doubles as the Vikings went 3-0 at the tournament. McBride continued that last weekend, overcoming a slow start to record eight kills, 11 digs and three blocks in the Vikings' 3-1, comeback win over Idaho State. McBride put together her best match of the season in the Vikings' 3-1 win over Gonzaga on Sept. 19, when she set season highs for kills (15) and digs (19).
 

YOUNG NO MORE

The Vikings have more upperclassmen (10) than underclassmen (6) this season for the first time since 2018. The team has been developing its young players over the past two seasons, and now has as many fifth-year seniors (3 – Genevieve Florig, Maddy Reeb, Parker Webb) as they do true freshmen (3 – Morgan Halady, Teniyah Leuluai, Lily Snook). It's a far cry from where the Vikings' roster was two years ago, when the team featured seven freshmen and nine underclassmen on their 12-player roster.
 

DIVISION I TRANSFERS

The Vikings have added six Division I transfers in the past two seasons. Zoe McBride (Morgan State), Megan Sester (Cal Baptist) and Ally Wada (San Francisco) joined the Vikings before last season, while Genevieve Florig (UCONN), Makayla Lewis (San Jose State) and Sydney Rabe (UW Green Bay) joined the Vikings before this season. McBride and Wada finished with four and 11 double-doubles, respectively, in the team's shortened 2021 winter season. Lewis, meanwhile, was the only Viking to finish with at least eight kills, four blocks and 10 digs in the team's 5-0 exhibition win over Central Washington Monday.
 

PRESEASON PREDICTIONS

Big Sky coaches picked the Vikings to finish sixth in the conference before the season. If that were to come to fruition, it would mark the Vikings' highest finish within the conference since 2017, when they placed fourth. A sixth-place finish in the Big Sky would also see the Vikings return to the Big Sky tournament for the first time since 2017, when they made it to the conference semifinals before losing to regular-season champion and host Sacramento State.
 

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

Sept. 25, 2021, Portland State 3, Idaho State 1: The Vikings overcame a first-set loss to beat the Bengals in four sets. Out of seven wins so far this season, four have come in matches where the Vikings dropped the opening set.
Sept. 19, 2021, Portland State 3, Gonzaga 1: The Vikings overcame late deficits in the first and third sets to beat the Zags in four. The Vikings trailed by at least five points in every set that they won. 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 to run away with it after Gonzaga led 10-5 early. 
Sept. 18, 2021, Portland State 3, North Dakota State 2: The Vikings overcame an 0-2 deficit while reverse sweeping the Bison to win in five sets. It was the first time the Vikings have come back to win after losing the first two sets since doing it against Utah State on Sept. 8, 2016.
Sept. 17, 2021, Portland State 3, North Dakota State 0: The Vikings hit a seasonal-best .312 against the Bison, who came into the match having won four straight, including a 3-1 win over Cal out of the Pac-12. The Vikings hadn't topped .300 hitting in a match since their 2019 season opener.
Sept. 10, 2021, Portland State 3, Grand Canyon 2: The Vikings handed Grand Canyon, which entered the match 7-0, its first loss of the season while winning in five sets. Makayla Lewis and Parker Webb became the first Viking teammates to record 20+ kills in the same match since Pati Anae and Eva Linden each had 21 kills against Montana State on Oct. 24, 2015. Those two were also part of four Vikings who finished with double-doubles in the match, only the second time that's happened since 2010, and the first time since 2019.
Sept. 9, 2021, Portland State 3, Portland 1: The Vikings beat their cross-town rival in the Pilots, breaking open a match that had been tied 1-1 and 14-all in the third set. The Vikings won 11 of the final 14 points of the third set, then dominated the fourth set, 25-7. 
Aug. 28, 2021, Portland State 3, Santa Clara 1: Ellie Snook set a new four-set career high with 30 digs as the Vikings overcame a first-set loss to beat the Broncos in four sets. Snook had 14 digs in the crucial third set alone. Ally Wada was named to the Oregon Invitational All-Tournament Team after she finished with 33 assists and 17 digs in the match.