1ORTLAND, Ore. – Playing their best ball of the season, the Portland State softball team will look to extend its win streak to seven on Friday when they host Western Oregon for a doubleheader at Gordon Faber Field 4 (12/2:30pm).
 
Friday's games will air on ESPN+. Live stats will also be available at vikslive.com.
 

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GAME NOTES – WESTERN OREGON (13-8) at PORTLAND STATE (8-14) | FRIDAY, MARCH 15

SERIES HISTORY 
Although the teams have met 63 times, Friday's doubleheader will be the first matchup between the programs since 2002. The Vikings carry a 54-9 all-time series lead. 

The Wolves are 13-8 on the year and have won 10 of their last 11 games. They're coming off a doubleheader sweep of Corban on Wednesday, March 13. 

LAST TIME OUT – OREGON STATE SWEEP
The Vikings continued their home stand on Tuesday with an impressive doubleheader sweep of Oregon State, extending their win streak to five with a pair of 1-0 victories. A run in the fourth inning of the opener was enough to secure game one and a walk-off single by Lorraine Alo sealed the game two victory for PSU. Grace Kimball and Allicitie Frost led the charge for the Vikings, combining for 18 scoreless innings while limiting the Beavers to just 11 hits. Of those 11 hits, only one went for extra bases. Before Tuesday, the Vikings hadn't shut out the Beavers since 2011. Offensively, the Vikings compiled nine hits, with only four players contributing to that count.
 
WHO'S HOT

• Maddie Thompson's team-high .403 batting average ranks third in the Big Sky. In eight of her 18 starts she's tallied two or more hits. She enters Friday on a 10-game hitting streak after going 8-for-17 (.471) at the plate over the last five games (against Seattle and Oregon State)
• Lorraine Alo's .364 (16-for-44) average ranks second on the team. She led the Vikings with a 4-for-7 (.571) performance at the plate against the Beavers, recording two hits in each game
• Logan Riggenbach has eight doubles on the year, ranking third in the Big Sky
• Grace Johnson was 3-for-4 (.750) against Seattle, finishing the series with an.833 on-base percentage and two RBI
• Paetynn Lopez has a team-high ten RBI, five of those coming at the Silicon Valley Classic. Her five extra-base hits ranks second on the team behind Riggenbach
• Emily Johansen has hit two three-run home runs in the past nine games and is the only Viking to record a home run this season

HIGHLIGHTS IN THE CIRCLE

• Allicitie Frost leads the staff with 3.16 ERA over 51 innings pitched, while Grace Kimball has a team-high 38 strikeouts over 48.1 innings
• 3/12 vs. OSU - Frost threw her third complete game of the season against the Beavers on Tuesday. Over 11 impressive innings, she allowed just six hits and struck out five batters en route to her third win of the year. In game one against Oregon State, Kimball held the Beavers to just five hits in her second complete-game shutout of the season
• 2/24 vs. Pacific - notched her first win as a Viking against Pacific (OR) on Feb.24, striking out a career-high eight batters in 3.2 innings of work. Her and Annie Lemos combined for a no-hit shutout in game one of the doubleheader
• 2/11 vs. Utah State - Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung  earned the first victory of the 2024 season, pitching a complete game against the Aggies at the Lynn Russell Miller Classic
• 2/10 vs. Utah State - Lemos tossed the first complete game of her career in the Vikings' 3-2 loss to Utah State (2/10). She held a hot Nevada team to eight hits and three earned runs while striking out three

KIMBALL-IN'
For the first time in her career, redshirt junior Grace Kimball was named the Big Sky Pitcher of the Week on Monday, March 11. She played a pivotal role in the Vikings' sweep of the Redhawks last week, boasting a 2-0 record, 0.00 ERA and eight strikeouts, while holding Seattle to a .154 average across 10.2 innings pitched. Her standout performance came in the Vikings' 2-0 win in the second game of the series. She struck out six batters while limiting the Redhawks to just four hits in a complete-game shutout. Since her Big Sky weekly honor, Kimball added another impressive win to her resume. She has gone three outings (17.2 innings pitched) without giving up a run, recording two wins against the Rehawks and one against the Beavers, two of those complete-game shutouts. She allowed just 11 hits over 17.2 innings of work, none of which went for extra bases. 

SPRING FLING ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM 
Both Maddie Thompson and Lorraine Alo were named to the Spring Fling All-Tournament Team two weekends ago. Thompson had a phenomenal weekend at the plate, hitting .526 (10-for-19). Alo was .385 (5-for-13) with two RBI and an on-base percentage of .429. 

CHASING (AND BREAKING) RECORDS
Fifth-year senior Emily Johansen currently holds top-ten positions in ten of the program's all-time offensive categories. Earlier this season, she tied the program's career record for sac flies (12), joining Crysta Conn who set the mark back in 2014. Last Friday, she knocked a three-run home run against Seattle, tying Mandy Hill for the program's all-time career RBI record (135). She's on the verge of breaking Hill's record from 2008, needing just one more RBI to become the sole record holder.

• Current Numbers: Home runs: 29 (Rec. 32)  | RBI: 135 (Rec. 135) | Doubles: 30 (Rec. 44) | Walks: 75 (Rec. 84) | Runs scored: 101 (Rec. 133)

WIN STREAK
Two victories on Friday would extend the Vikings' win streak to seven, matching the program's longest streak since 2013. 

RECORD ANALYSIS 

• The Vikings are 7-0 at home, outscoring their opponents 35-8 
• Half of the Vikings' losses (7-of-14) have occurred by two runs or less
• Nearly half (35-of-75) of the Vikings' runs have been scored in the fourth and fifth innings
• The Vikings are 4-3 when they out-hit their opponents and 5-4 when they score first
• The first inning is crucial for the Vikings defensively, who hold a 1-8 record when their opponent scores in their opening at-bat. They've allowed 20 runs in the first and are 1-7 when trailing after the first inning

ALL-CONFERENCE RETURNERS
The Vikings landed five All-Big Sky honors last season. For the second consecutive season, three Vikings were named to the first team, including returners Maddie Thompson and Emily Johansen. In addition to her first team nod, Johansen became the Vikings' first-ever Big Sky Player of the Year. Second Team pitcher Allicitie Frost is also among the all-conference returners from last season.  
 
DYNAMIC DUO
Two 2023 first-team members are manning the Vikings' right side of the infield this season, first baseman Emily Johansen and second baseman Maddie Thompson. The duo was exceptionally outstanding last year in conference action, both hitting above .400. Thompson finished with a .345 overall average while hitting a conference-best .477 (21-for-44) during Big Sky play. Johansen hit .344 on the season (.435 BSC) and produced d a team-high 44 RBI and 13 doubles. Thompson's .441 and Johansen's .460 on-base percentages were the top two in the Big Sky. Defensively, they combined for 104 putouts and 33 assists with just a single error across 15 conference games.  
 
NINE STRONG: VIKING SENIOR CLASS
The Vikings have nine seniors on their roster this season, eight of whom have played their entire careers at Portland State. Emily Johansen and Marisol Gaona are the oldest of the group, using their fifth year of eligibility offered due to COVID-19. Also in her fifth season is transfer Makayla Romeo. This is her first season at Portland State following two seasons at both LMU and Tarleton State. Maddie Thompson, Paetynn Lopez, Alexa Cepeda, Logan Riggenbach, Shea Garcia and Allicitie Frost all began their careers at PSU as freshmen in 2020 (ahead of '21 season). This class has had a lasting impact on the program, winning 61 games, 24 Big Sky contests and nine postseason wins over three years. In three consecutive Big Sky tournament appearances, they've clinched one conference title and secured two top-three finishes. Their impressive achievements have been complemented by notable accolades. Among them, five players have earned at least one all-conference honor, totaling nine honors collectively. Four players have been named first-team All-Big Sky and two have earned All-Region honors.