GREELEY, Colo. — Down 0-2 to second-seeded Sacramento State in the quarterfinals of the Big Sky Tournament, the Portland State volleyball team showed its mettle. A mix of veterans and youth led the Vikings back to force a fifth set against the Hornets Monday sat Bank of Colorado Arena.
 
And while the Vikings didn't complete the comeback, losing 3-2 (25-18, 25-16, 20-25, 21-25, 15-10) to the Hornets, the match will serve as a launching pad for a Portland State team that featured only two seniors in 2025.
 
"I'm proud of our response to being down 0-2," Portland State head coach Michael Seemann said afterwards. "Our blocking and defense really kept us in this match. I would have liked to lock into their tendencies sooner, but in this case, better late than not at all.
 
"This team has been incredible to be around. They developed a culture that is rooted in support, love, and care for one another. This season has been a blast. I love this team."
 
The defense keyed the turnaround for the Vikings (11-17). After the Hornets (20-9) hit a combined .286 over the first two sets, the Vikings held them to just .121 hitting over the next two sets.
 
Better passing helped the defensive effort. Out of the Hornets' seven aces Monday, only two came after the opening two sets. Additionally, 5.0 of the Vikings' 8.0 blocks against the Hornets came after the opening two frames, while the Vikings touched up several more attacks at the net after the start of the third set.
 
Redshirt junior Sydney Stenson – playing in what's likely the final match of her collegiate career – helped spark the comeback. She subbed on for the first time in the third set and instantly made an impact. She finished with four kills on .222 hitting and an ace offensively, while also contributing at the net with a pair of blocks.
 
Stenson's fellow senior Tyra Schaub also picked up her play after the opening two sets. Six of Schaub's 11 kills came as the Vikings mounted their comeback in the third and fourth sets, while she hit a combined .384 in those two frames.
 
Schaub added 10 digs to her 11 kills, giving the senior her ninth double-double of the season in her final match as a Viking.
 
It wasn't just the veteran presence for the Vikings Monday, however. Freshman Alivia Eikenberg – newly minted as the Vikings' first freshman to make the All-Big Sky first team since 2010 – finished with a team-high 19 kills in the match. Twelve of Eikenberg's 19 kills came over the final three sets, including five each in the third and fourth sets.
 
Freshman Katie Brewer may have been the bigger surprise Monday. Having played in only four sets during the regular season, Brewer was forced into action after fellow middle blocker Reese Biesemeyer went down with an injury in the Vikings' regular-season finale at Eastern Washington Friday. If Brewer were nervous about the increased responsibility, she didn't show it, recording nine kills on .421 hitting for the Vikings.
 
She and fellow middle blocker Naomi White gave the Vikings plenty of offense out of the middle. Besides Brewer, White finished with 10 kills on .400 hitting, while also contributing defensively with seven blocks.
 
White was a key piece in both late runs that gave the Vikings the third and fourth sets. In the third, the Vikings and Hornets were tied at 18-all before White sparked a 7-2 PSU finish to the set with two kills and a block.
 
The Vikings then trailed 21-20 late in the fourth set after a 3-0 run by the Hornets. White responded with a kill out of a timeout to level the set at 21-all. A block with Eikenberg two points later then made it 23-21, and the Vikings didn't let up, finishing the frame on a 5-0 run.
 
White's fellow juniors Ava Blascziek and Paige Stepaniuk both also contributed to Monday's near comeback. Blascziek recorded her 12th double-double of the season with 46 assists and 10 digs out of her setter position. Stepaniuk, meanwhile, finished with 20 digs in the match, 11 of which came as the Vikings mounted their comeback in the third and fourth sets.
 
The three juniors should be back next season, as well as Eikenberg, Brewer and the vast majority of Vikings who played Monday. The Vikings played this season with 11 underclassmen on their 16-player roster, after all, and yet nearly upset the second-seeded Hornets to make the Big Sky semifinals.
 
"This moment will sink in," Seemann said of how Monday's quarterfinal will launch the Vikings into next year. "When we look at the future, I know this group will be ready for whatever challenges come our way."
 
Match Notes:

• The Vikings fell to 28-57 all-time against the Hornets with Monday's loss. They're 2-4 at the Big Sky Tournament against the Hornets after Monday.
• The Vikings are 11-18 all-time at the Big Sky Tournament after Monday's loss. They've exited in the first round in each of the last three tournaments.
• The Vikings fell to 3-6 in five-set matches this season with Monday's loss.
• If the Vikings had completed the comeback Monday, it would have been their first reverse sweep at the Big Sky tournament since they came back to beat Montana, 3-2, on Nov. 26, 2010.

Read Full Article