STANFORD, Calif. – The Portland State softball team opened the Cardinal Classic on Friday, splitting its doubleheader against UC Davis and UC Riverside. The Vikings fell to the Aggies 2-0 before bouncing back with a 5-3 win over the Highlanders at Stanford Stadium.

Portland State moved to 3-4 on the season, while UC Davis improved to 4-1 and UC Riverside dropped to 4-4.

Grace Kimball got the start in game one and kept the Vikings within striking distance, but UC Davis' Caroline Grimes held PSU to just two hits, shutting them out for the first time this season. A solo home run in the third put the Aggies on the board, and they added another run in the fourth to extend their lead to 2-0. Looking for a spark in their final at-bat, Lorraine Alo opened the seventh with a double to left center, but the Vikings couldn't capitalize.

Kimball threw a complete game, striking out four while allowing two runs on seven hits. Ellie Babbitt and Alo recorded Portland State's only hits.

Game two saw the Vikings jump out to an early lead, scoring in three of the first five innings. Freshman Kendall Nevin put PSU on the board with a sacrifice fly in the second, bringing home Natalia Martinez for her first collegiate RBI. An inning later, Martinez added a sacrifice fly of her own, scoring Grace Johnson to give the Vikings a two-run lead. The Vikings tacked on two more runs in the fifth with RBI from both Johnson and Martinez.

Meanwhile, Viking starter Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung was dealing in the circle, holding the Highlanders to just two hits through their first four innings. However, UC Riverside broke through in the fifth, stringing together four hits in a three-run rally to cut the deficit to 4-3.

The Vikings added insurance in the sixth when Nevin tallied her second RBI of the game, driving in  Nakoa-Chung from second to extend the lead back to two.

Anna Jardin, who took over for Nakoa-Chung in the fifth, shut the door on the Highlanders, allowing just one hit and striking out three over the final two innings to secure the win.

Portland State tallied nine hits—its second-most of the season—spread across eight different players. Martinez was the lone Viking with multiple hits, while she and Nevin led the team with two RBI each.

Nakoa-Chung earned her first win of the season, throwing 4.1 innings while allowing six hits and two earned runs. 

Portland State will look to build on Friday's win as it prepares for another doubleheader on Saturday, beginning with a 12:30 p.m. rematch against UC Davis, followed by a 6 p.m. matchup against No. 20 Stanford at Stanford Stadium.