PORTLAND, Ore. –The Portland State softball team will wrap up its regular season at home this weekend, hosting Big Sky regular season champion Idaho State for a three-game series and Senior Weekend. The series opens with a doubleheader on Friday, April 25, starting at 2:00 p.m., followed by a single game on Saturday, April 26 at noon.

All three games will stream live on ESPN+, with live stats available as well (links below). The Vikings will honor their seven seniors with an on-field ceremony following the conclusion of Saturday's series finale.
 

PORTLAND STATE SOFTBALL GAME NOTES // WEEK 12
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SENIOR DAY 

• The Vikings will celebrate seven seniors following Saturday's series finale. Four-year Vikings Natalia Martinez, Ellie Babbitt, Neveah Smith, and Annie Lemos will be honored alongside Grace Kimball, Jade Henry, and Alapaese Matautia, who joined the program as transfers ahead of the 2024 season.

LAST TIME OUT - AT NORTHERN COLORADO

• Due to inclement weather in Greeley last Friday, the Vikings and Bears played just two games over the weekend—both on Saturday. Portland State dropped both contests, falling 11-2 in the opener and 8-7 in game two. After Northern Colorado claimed a run-rule win in game one, the Vikings responded in game two by leading through six innings. But the Bears rallied in the bottom of the seventh, sealing the win with a walkoff two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh.

• Early scoring has been key for the Vikings, who have struck first in eight of their 11 wins this season—including first-inning runs in each of those eight games.
• PSU has struggled when playing from behind, holding a 3-28 record when allowing their opponent to score first.
• The Vikings have found success when keeping opponents in check, going 8-8 in games where they allow five runs or fewer.
• They've also been strong at protecting leads, posting a 9-2 record when leading after four innings.

• Despite two losses over the weekend, the Vikings had a solid showing at the plate, hitting .340 across two games. Ellie Babbitt led the way, hitting .600 (3-for-5) with an on-base percentage of .714, knocking one double and adding one RBI
• Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung, Alapese Matautia, and Jade Henry also had strong offensive showings against the Bears, each hitting .500 in the doubleheader. Nakoa-Chung went 3-for-6 with a double, a home run, and two RBI. Matautia added a 2-for-4 effort with an RBI, while Henry also 1-for-2 and reached base twice more via a walk and hit by pitch, finishing with a team-best .750 on-base percentage.
• The Vikings were batting just .200 through their first 22 games of the season, but have seen a significant uptick in the second half of the year—raising their average 35 points (to .235) over the last six weeks (24 games) 
• PSU is hitting .266 as a team in BSC play, highlighted by a season-best three-game series at Weber State (3/28-29). They posted a .317 team batting average, highlighted by a season-high 16 hits in game two against the Wildcats (3/28). Their .340 doubleheader at Northern Colorado this weekend rose their conference average .17 points, from .249-.266.
• Designated hitter Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung leads the Vikings with a .329 batting average, .450 on-base percentage, and .537 slugging percentage. Additionally, she's leading the team in conference play, hitting .400 (12-for-30) with a team-high four doubles and six RBIs. 
• Nakoa-Chung has reached base in 21 of her last 22 games, including a recent 17-game streak that featured hits in seven consecutive outings.
• Ellie Babbitt and Lorraine Alo join Nakoa-Chung as the only other Vikings with 20 or more Big Sky at-bats hitting above .300 in conference play. Babbitt is batting .379 and has led the Vikings offensively in recent outings—hitting .571 (4-for-7) against Sacramento State and .600 (3-for-5) in last weekend's doubleheader at Northern Colorado. Alo is hitting .303 in Big Sky action and enters the final weekend riding a season-long five-game hitting streak.
• Seniors Natalia Martinez and Ellie Babbitt, along with sophomore Lorraine Alo, have each recorded 20 or more RBIs this season, combining for 70 as a group—more than half of the team's total.

• Active Reached Base Streaks (3+ games): Ellie Babbitt (5 games), Lorraine Alo (5 games), Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung (4 games), Alapese Matautia (3 games)
• Active Hitting Streaks (2+ games): Lorraine Alo (5 games), Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung (3 games)

• Redshirt junior right-hander Gracie Walters had a career weekend in the circle two weeks ago, leading the Vikings to their first series victory of the season, taking two games from Montana (April 12-13)
• In the Vikings game two win, Walters threw just the second no-hitter by a Viking since 2012, facing 24 batters over seven innings, walking only two, and holding Montana hitless.
• She followed that with another standout performance in Sunday's series finale, allowing just one hit over 4.1 innings as PSU sealed the series with a 6-2 victory.
• Across the weekend, she threw 11.1 innings, held the Griz to a .031 batting average, struck out four, allowed only one run, and posted a 0.62 ERA.
• Her performance landed her first career Big Sky Pitcher of the Week honor

• Five different pitchers have earned wins in the circle this season: Grace Kimball (3), Gracie Walters (3), Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung (2), Anna Jardin (2), and Annie Lemos (1).
• Gracie Walters has made five appearances and three starts in conference play, posting a 2-2 record over 25.0 innings pitched. She's thrown two complete games, struck out 12 batters while holding opponents to a .157 batting average
• Despite Walters' recent heavy workload, Grace Kimball still leads the staff by a wide margin in innings pitched—logging 96.2 innings heading into the final weekend, which is 40.1 more than any other Viking pitcher.
• Kimball's 20 starts lead the Big Sky this season, while her 60 strikeouts rank second among conference pitchers.
• In less than two full seasons, Kimball has climbed to eighth all-time in career strikeouts during the program's Division I era, entering the weekend with 185 as she closes in on the 200-strikeout mark.

• In addition to Gracie Walters' Pitcher of the Week honor two weekends ago, two other Viking pitchers have received the award this season
• Grace Kimball was named the Big Sky's Co-Pitcher of the Week following an impressive weekend at the Cardinal Classic (2/14-16) She pitched two complete games, totaling 15 innings while shutting out her opponents in 13 of them. She held UC Davis and UC Riverside to a .207 batting average, yielding just two earned runs for a 0.93 ERA on the weekend. On the final day, she threw nine innings against the Highlanders—eight of them scoreless—allowing just five hits and no earned runs. She finished the weekend with eight strikeouts, just three walks, and only three extra-base hits allowed. The honor was the second Big Sky Pitcher of the Week honor of her career. 
• For the first time in her career, junior Sherreigh Nakoa-Chung was named the Big Sky Pitcher of the Week (3/24), following games against Rutgers and Pacific (CA). Her week in the circle was highlighted by a scoreless outing against Rutgers (3/19) where she limited the Scarlet Knights to just two hits in 4.2 innings while striking out five. She later threw 3.1 innings against the Tigers (3/22-23) finishing the week with a 2.62 ERA and holding her opponents to a .200 batting average.

• Redshirt junior second baseman Grace Johnson has 20 stolen bases on the season, ranking second in the Big Sky. 
• She's currently just two stolen bases shy of tying the program's division I-era single-season stolen base record of 22, set by Olivia Dean in 2023 
• Career-wise Johnson has 32 across her three seasons of action as she continues to chase the program's DI career leader, Olivia Dean who has 48

• Of the Vikings' 12 returners this year, none bring more experience than senior third baseman Natalia Martinez, who has appeared in 162 games and made 145 starts over her four-year career at Portland State.
• She's started at least 28 games in each of her four seasons at PSU, tallying 417 at-bats, 108 hits, nine home runs, and 69 RBIs while posting a .259 career batting average.
• A steady presence at third base, Martinez has recorded 109 putouts and 183 assists on 328 total chances
• She notched her 100th career hit on March 28 at Weber State earlier this season 

• Viking Head Coach Meadow McWhorter is in her ninth season at Portland State, carrying a 148-248 (.374) overall record
• She recently established herself as the second-winningest coach in program history, surpassing Tobin Echo-Hawk with 148 wins—trailing only Teri Mariani.
• She's led the Vikings to a 61-70 (.467) Big Sky record and four straight top-three finishes in the conference tournament, including a title in 2021, third-place finishes in 2022 and 2023, and a runner-up finish in 2024
• McWhorter has coached 24 first- and second-team All-Big Sky selections, four individual award winners (including 2023 BSC Player of the Year Emily Johansen), four All-Pacific Region honorees, and 15 Big Sky All-Tournament selections

• The Vikings have played three opponents ranked in the Top 25 this season and five schools in power four conferences
• They hosted #10 Florida State for their home-opening doubleheader at Hillsboro Stadium (March 11), dropping both games to the Noles, 11-0 (6 inn.) and 18-5
• Portland State took on then-No. 20 Stanford in week two, falling 16-5 in five innings, and faced No. 12 Oregon on Feb. 28, losing 9-1 in six innings. 
• The Vikings also played Grand Canyon (L, 9-0 in 5 inn.), a team that's received votes in the national polls several weeks this season
• The Vikings' last win over a ranked opponent came in 2022 when they defeated No. 24 Oregon State 6-1 in Corvallis.

• The Vikings return 12 players from last year's team that went 23-24 overall, 6-8 in Big Sky play, and finished as the Big Sky Tournament runner-up
• Three returners earned all-conference honors (Lorraine Alo, Grace Kimball, Natalia Martinez), while all four 2024 Big Sky All-Tournament selections (Alo, Martinez, Kimball, Ellie Babbitt) are back
• The roster includes 11 newcomers: eight freshmen and three transfers
• Freshmen: RHP Delaney Hoyle, C Kendall Nevin, C Scarlett McEwen, C Samiya Wright, OF Gracie Toney, OF Nichole Orozco, OF Elise Sanchez, MIF Rylee Gaustad
• Transfers: LHP Sophia Guerra (CSU Bakersfield, Guatemala), RHP Anna Jardin (Rhode Island, Wilsonville, Ore.), C Abby Carsley (Kansas, McMinnville, Ore.) –will redshirt this season.

• As a freshman in 2024, designated hitter Lorraine Alo had one of the best offensive seasons in program history and the second-best ever in the Big Sky Conference
• She set a single-season program record with a .440 batting average, ranking eighth in the nation, going 55-for-125 with 11 doubles, one triple, five home runs, and 32 RBI. She also set a program record with a .517 on-base percentage
• She dominated the Big Sky Tournament, hitting .632 (12-for-19) over six games with two home runs, four RBI, and a .708 on-base percentage
• Alo became the first player in program history to be named Big Sky Freshman of the Year, earning first-team utility honors
• Additionally, she was named second-team All-Pacific Region by the NFCA and became the program's first-ever freshman to be a TUCCI/NFCA DI National Freshman of the Year Finalist (Top 25)

• A transfer from Boise State, Kimball led the Vikings in the circle in her first season at Portland State in 2024. As a redshirt junior for PSU, she went 15-10 overall and 6-2 in Big Sky play, throwing 153.2 innings
• She posted a 3.42 ERA for the season, with a 2.30 ERA in Big Sky regular season play. She pitched 14 complete games, including four shutouts, while holding opponents to a .256 average with 128 strikeouts
• She had a dominant Big Sky Tournament run, tossing 35 innings over four days with a 3-1 record, three complete games, and 30 strikeouts to lead the Vikings to a runner-up finish
• Kimball was named Big Sky Newcomer of the Year and earned second-team all-conference honors

• The Vikings have 50 games scheduled for the regular season, with 17 at home, 33 on the road, 35 non-conference games, and 15 Big Sky contests
• They'll compete in five non-conference tournaments, four of them consecutively in February, totaling 20 games in 24 days
• Tournament schedule: La Jolla Invitational (Feb. 7-9), Cardinal Classic (Feb. 14-16), ASU/GCU Invite (Feb. 21-23), University of Oregon Invitational (Feb. 28-March 1), and Santa Clara/St. Mary's Invitational (March 14-16)
• Their non-conference schedule includes seven Power Four opponents, three of which finished in last year's final top 25 poll