PORTLAND, Ore. – Following a 2-1 weekend to open conference action, the Portland State softball team will head to California to take on Sacramento State on Friday and Saturday. The series will begin with a doubleheader on Friday (1 & 3:30 p.m.) and will conclude with a single game on Saturday at noon.  
 
The series will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Live Stats will also be provided for fans. 
 
The Vikings are 18-11 on the year, and 2-1 in Big Sky action. Similarly, the Hornets are 18-14 overall and 2-1 in conference play entering the weekend.
 

LAST TIME OUT

Portland State claimed its first Big Sky series last weekend with a pair of victories over Montana on the road. All three games against the Grizzlies were decided by one run. The Vikings took the opening game 3-2 in nine innings before securing the series with a 4-3 victory in game two. Montana avoided the series sweep with a 5-4 win on Sunday to close out the weekend. The Vikings hit .275 over three games, tallying five home runs and 25 hits. 
 

PRESEASON POLL

The Vikings were picked second in the 2022 Big Sky Preseason Coaches Poll released on Jan. 31. Totaling 28 points and two first-place votes, PSU was chosen below defending regular-season Champion Weber State, who received 34 points and four first-place votes.
 

RANKED OPPONENTS

Four of the Viking's ten losses have come against ranked opponents this season (No. 24 Arizona State, No. 20 Louisiana, No.11 Oregon, and No.24 Oregon State). On March 12, the Vikings ended an eleven-year drought, beating No. 24/23 Oregon State 6-1 to clinch the program's first victory over a ranked opponent since 2011.
 

STRONG START

The Vikings began the 2022 campaign outscoring its opponents 48-13 at the Lynn Russell Miller Classic in Riverside, Calif. The 48 runs were the most to start a season in program history. They hit .387 over three days, totaling 58 hits and 70 total bases en route to a 4-1 start.
 
The following weekend, the Vikings claimed their first win over a Pac-12 opponent since 2015 with a dominant 7-1 victory over Cal at the Littlewood Classic in Tempe, Ariz.

THE REAL DEAL

The Viking's 16-10 non-conference record marks their best start since 2006. the Vikings proved they're the real deal early on, going 2-4 against Pac-12 opponents. On Feb, 18, the Vikings topped Cal 7-1 at the Littlewood Classic in Tempe, Ariz, the program's first win over a Pac-12 opponent since 2015. The Vikings took the No.24/23 Beavers by storm a few weeks later, winning 6-1 in Corvallis. They're just the fifth team in the program's Division I history to beat two Pac-12 opponents in a single season; the last team to do it was in 2008.
 

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Olivia Grey – Grey picked up back-to-back Pitcher of the week honors after going 5-0 during the opening two weeks of the season. She picked up her third weekly honor after leading the Vikings to a pair of wins at the UO/OSU Invitational three weekends ago.  
 
Maddie Thompson – Thompson earned the first Player of the Week nod of her career during week one, after hitting .619 and leading the nation in hits (13) at the Lynn Russell Miller Classic.
 
Logan Riggenbach – Riggenbach notched her first Player of the Week honor this past week after hitting .714 over four games leading the Vikings to a 3-1 record.   
 

SPEED ON THE BASE PATHS

Portland State leads the Big Sky in stolen bases with 43. Maddie Thompson is tied for first in the conference with 15 while Olivia Dean ranks third with 13. The Vikings have recorded at least one stolen base in seven-straight games.
 

SOLID DEFENSE

PSU leads the Big Sky with a .980 fielding percentage, which ranks eighth in the nation. They've played seventeen errorless games so far this season.
 

KEYS TO VICTORY

The Vikings are...

• 15-0 when holding their opponents to less than three runs
• 17-1 when surrendering four runs or less  
• 13-3 when they score the first run of the game
•  7-1 when they score in the first inning
• 15-1 when leading after four innings 

RIGGENBACH ON A ROLL

Sophomore outfielder Logan Riggenbach has been stellar at the plate as of late. She enters the weekend riding a four-game hitting streak, after going 10-for-14 (.714) with three home runs and eight RBIs last week. In the Montana series alone, Riggenbach recorded eight hits, three doubles and two home runs for a slugging percentage of 1.545 and an on base percentage of .750. Riggenbach ranks seventh in the Big Sky with a .354 batting average entering this weekend's series.
 

LONG BALL LOPEZ

Sophomore catcher Paetynn Lopez leads the Vikings with seven home runs, 48 total bases and 19 RBIs. Her seven home runs rank fourth in the Big Sky while her .676 slugging percentage ranks third. Lopez has recorded a hit in six-straight games and has hit a home run in two of the last three.
 

CONSISTENCY AT THE CLEANUP SPOT

Junior Emily Johansen has reached base in 12-straight games, as she leads the Vikings with an impressive .437 on base percentage. Johansen has spent all but three games in the cleanup spot for the Vikings, drawing a team-high fifteen walks while recording four multi-hit games.
 

OWNING THE CIRCLE

Olivia Grey holds a 12-2 record in the circle, tossing eleven complete games, including three complete-game shutouts while holding her opponents to a .188 average at the plate. She leads the Big Sky with a 1.49 ERA and 136 strikeouts, which ranks 17th in the country.
 
Grey had a career performance against North Dakota State on March 11, striking out a career-high fifteen batters while pitching nine shutout innings. She followed that up with another complete-game performance on March 12 against No. 23/24 Oregon State, allowing six hits and one earned run.

SCOUTING SACRAMENTO STATE

The Hornets are 18-14 heading into the series after a solid start to their season. Last weekend, Sacramento State went 2-1 against Idaho State to capture its first conference series victory. Following an 8-10 record in conference action a year ago, the Hornets were picked third in the Big Sky Preseason Coaches Poll, one spot behind the Vikings. Leading the conference with a .415 batting average, Lewa Day has propelled the Hornets to the highest team batting average in the Big Sky (.299). Marissa Bertuccio is the go-to in the circle for the Hornets, holding a 12-4 record and a 2.34 ERA. Sacramento State is led by Lori Perez, who's in her ninth season at the helm.
 
Friday's series opener will mark the 80th meeting between the two programs. Despite getting swept by the Vikings last season, Sacramento State leads the all-time series 52-27. PSU posted two shutout wins against the Hornets in April of 2021 before closing out the series with a 14-3 run-rule victory to complete the sweep.