HONOLULU, Hawaii – Late innings proved unforgiving for the Portland State softball team on Friday as they suffered back-to-back narrow defeats to Tennessee State, 4-3 and Hawai'i, 6-5 on day two of the Spring Fling Tournament at the Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium.
 
Despite the results, the Vikings (3-12) played solid softball, committing just one error while totaling 18 hits. Entering the weekend, five of their 10 losses had been by two runs or less. Unfortunately, they added to that number Friday, surrendering the winning run in the seventh to the Tigers (7-8) and in the sixth to the Rainbow Wahine (3-10).
 
The Vikings totaled seven hits in game one, which were highlighted by a crucial three-run home run from Emily Johansen in the fifth.
 
The Tigers scored a single run in the second before tacking on another in the fourth. With Alexa Cepeda and Maddie Thompson on base, Johansen knocked her first long ball of the season to give the Vikings a 3-2 lead in the top of the fifth. Heading into the bottom of the seventh, PSU was just three outs away from securing a win. However, the Tigers mounted a two-out rally and tied the game with a bases-loaded walk, followed by a walk-off bloop single to seal the victory.
 
The Vikings were the first to score against Hawai'i in game two. Lorraine Alo, who finished the day 4-for-5 at the plate, got things started for Portland State with an RBI single in the top of the first. The Rainbow Wahine responded with one run in the first and two in the second.
 
Once again, Alo came through for the Vikings in the third inning, driving in Logan Riggenbach with an RBI triple. Alapese Matautia then followed with a game-tying RBI single. However, UH quickly regained the lead with two runs in the fourth. The back-and-forth action continued as Thompson and Riggenbach leveled the score at five with a pair of RBI in the top half of the sixth.
 
The Rainbow Wahine secured what would be the winning run in the bottom of the sixth, scoring off a Portland State error to secure a 6-5 advantage. The Vikings threatened with a runner in scoring position in the final at bat but Hawai'i managed to shut the door, securing the 6-5 victory.

Allicitie Frost took on the bulk of the pitching duties in game one against the Tigers, throwing 6.2 innings in the loss. In game two, Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung made her first start of the weekend, pitching 3.0 innings before Grace Kimball took over in the fourth.
 
The Vikings notched a .300 average in addition to a .344 team-on-base percentage. They tallied eleven hits in game two, out-hitting the Rainbow Wahine 11-7. Alo and Riggenbach combined for four of the Vikings' extra-base hits, while Johansen led with a team-high three RBI.
 
Portland State will close out its three-day slate at the Spring Fling Tournament with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 2. They'll open the day against LMU at 12:30 p.m. HT/2:30 p.m. PT.
 
SPRING FLING SCHEDULE - SATURDAY, MARCH 2 
10:00 am - G1: #2 Hawai'i vs. #3 Tennessee State
12:30 pm - G2: #1 LMU vs. #4 Portland State
3:00 pm - Loser G1 vs. Loser G2
5:30 pm - Winner G1 vs. Winner G2