SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Portland State women's basketball team never backed down from a Sacramento State team that won its seventh game out of its last eight Saturday, but the Hornets still kept the Vikings at enough of a distance to beat the Vikings, 73-62, at The Nest.
 
The Vikings (5-14, 0-11 Big Sky) trailed by 12 points near the end of the first quarter, but narrowed the gap with an 8-0 run that got them back within three at 25-22 in the middle of the second quarter. The Hornets (11-10, 7-5 Big Sky) swelled their lead back out to 17 points at 57-40 with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, but the Vikings followed with an 8-1 run to get back within 10 at 58-48. 
 
One final fun came after that as the Vikings scored seven straight to get back within eight after the Hornets stretched it to a 70-55 lead. That left only 25 seconds left in the game, however, and so the Hornets put the game out of reach with a couple of free throws in the closing seconds.
 
"To continue to show up and battle like our team has is impressive," Portland State head coach Chelsey Gregg said after the game. "We have to believe that we can win games, and expect that we can win. We try to stay focused on the process and the journey, not the outcome. However, we must continue to believe we can do it. All we have is all we need."
 
Jada Lewis, playing in front of a good-sized crowd from her hometown of nearby Rocklin, Calif., led the Vikings in their run in the second quarter. Lewis scored eight of 10 points for the Vikings in the middle of the second period, including six of the Vikings' eight points in their 8-0 run thanks to a pair of three-pointers.
 
Lewis finished with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range. Lewis now has four games with 14 points or more out of the Vikings' last six contests, and she's averaged 3.0 three-point makes on 18-of-44 (.409) shooting from the outside during that stretch.
 
"It was great to see Jada knock down some threes in front of her friends and family," Gregg said of Lewis.
 
Freshman Alaya Fitzgerald led the Vikings during their runs in the fourth quarter. Fitzgerald scored 14 of her team-high 19 points in the fourth quarter, two points short of the school record for points in a quarter that Sidney Rielly set with 16 in the first quarter against Montana on Jan. 5, 2019.
 
Fitzgerald scored six of the Vikings' eight points in their 8-1 run that made it a 10-point game at 58-48 with 5:39 remaining. The freshman wing kicked off the run with an old-fashioned three-point play, then capped it with a traditional three-point shot. In fact, Fitzgerald scored 12 of the Vikings' 15 points from the moment it was 57-40 Sacramento State to when it was 67-55 with 2:41 remaining.
 
Like Lewis, Fitzgerald has been in form recently. She's scored in double figures in eight of the Vikings' past 10 games now, and is averaging a team-best 13.0 points per game since the Vikings re-started their season against Sacramento State on Jan. 15 following a 27-day hiatus. Fitzgerald has also averaged 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.8 assists per game since the re-start.
 
Fitzgerald scored eight of her 19 points from the free throw line where she was 8-of-9 Saturday. As a team, the Vikings went 17-of-23 (.739) against the Hornets, with the 23 attempts marking their third-most in a game this season, as well as their most since they had 25 against Montana State on Jan. 22.
 
Esmeralda Morales scored 10 of her 14 points in the second half Saturday, including five in the fourth quarter. Morales added three rebounds and three steals to her 14 points while going 5-of-12 from the field.
 
No other Viking besides Fitzgerald, Lewis and Morales scored more than five points. The Hornets only had five players score themselves, but two of those five were newcomers Lianna Tillman and Isnelle Natabou, who combined for 50 of the Hornets' 73 points. Tillman led all scorers with 27 points, while Natabou scored 23 to go with 17 rebounds and three steals.
 
The Vikings continue on the road Monday, when they'll face Northern Colorado – the team that beat the Vikings, 59-51, Thursday – at the Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley, Colo. Tipoff between the Vikings and Bears is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. PT / 5:30 p.m. MT.
 
Game Notes: The Vikings still lead the all-time series between them and the Hornets, 33-21, despite Saturday's loss…Saturday's game marked the Vikings' fifth contest in a 10-game stretch from Jan. 27 to Feb. 17 that spans only 22 days.