Vikings Play at Northern Colorado Thursday in Middle Game of Three-Game Road Trip

TIPOFF
The Portland State women's basketball team continues on the road for the middle of their three-game road trip at Northern Colorado Thursday. The Vikings and Bears tip off at 7 p.m. at Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley, Colo.

The Vikings posted a near-comeback for the second straight game as they opened their road trip with a close, 68-64 loss to Sacramento State last Saturday. The Vikings made up a nine-point deficit at halftime to tie it at 54-54 with under five minutes remaining. It was a one-point deficit with 2:20 remaining but turnovers and offensive rebounds hurt the Vikings down the stretch.

The Hornets converted on their third chance to go up 62-59. A turnover on the Vikings' next possession gave the ball back to the Hornets, who then stretched the lead to five with under a minute to go. Another turnover on the Vikings' next possession made it a free throw game for the Hornets from there.

The Vikings finished minus-10 in the turnover margin (19-to-9) against the Hornets. Additionally, even as they finished tied overall in rebounds (40-40), the Hornets owned a 21-to-14 advantage in offensive rebounds.

The Vikings will need to be better in both aspects against the Bears Thursday. Northern Colorado comes into the game ranked second in the Big Sky and in the top 40 nationally in both steals (12.5) and turnovers forced (21.4) per game. Additionally, they rank third in the conference in rebounding margin (+5.9), as well as second in offensive rebound per game (14.9).

Fortunately, the Vikings have been improving in both aspects of late. They've out-rebounded four of their last seven opponents, while they finished tied with two of the other three. That includes a draw with Idaho State on the glass, no small feat against a Bengal team that led the Big Sky with a +10.2 rebounding margin at the time.

The Vikings are +4.0 in their own rebounding margin over their last seven games. They were at minus-2.13 in the eight games before that stretch. Ajae Yoakum and Cici Ellington are both averaging over 8.0 rebounds per game during that stretch, with Yoakum at 8.4 and Ellington at 8.0.

Yoakum led the Vikings with 12 rebounds at Sacramento State last Saturday, five of which came on the offensive end. She leads the Vikings while ranking 10th in the Big Sky with 6.77 rebounds per game this season. Hannah Chicken ranks 13th in the conference with 6.13 rebounds per game while Ellington stands right behind at 14th with 6.07.

The Vikings have also been slightly better on the ball recently. They're averaging 16.4 turnovers per game over their last five games, down from 17.8 per game through their first 10 games of the season. The Vikings also have a better assist-to-turnover ratio during that time, as they are at 0.95 over their last five games compared to 0.58 in their first 10.

The Vikings have averaged 15.6 assists per game over their last five. They've assisted on 62.9 percent of their field goals during that stretch compared to 47.7 percent through their first 10 games. Laynee Torres-Kahapea is averaging 4.0 assists per game during that stretch while fellow point guard Taylor Moffat is at 3.2.

The higher assist rate means the Vikings have shot better than 40 percent in three of their last five games. They outshot the Hornets .439-to-.370 last Saturday despite the loss. The 43.9 percent (25-for-57) shooting marked the Vikings' third-best mark of the season.

The Vikings shot 66.7 percent (8-for-12) in the third quarter as they started their comeback.

Comebacks have been something the Vikings have been able to do this season. Two of their five wins have come despite trailing in the fourth quarter. They're outscoring opponents by 2.5 points per game in the fourth quarter this season, their best margin of any quarter. They made up a six-point deficit to beat Kansas City on Dec. 6, then made up an eight-point deficit to beat Weber State on Jan. 1. The comeback against Kansas City came on the road.

Kansas City is a common opponent between the Vikings and Bears as the Bears beat them 72-59 in Greeley, Colo., a few days before the Vikings won in Kansas City.

If the Vikings can transfer the energy of that game against the Roos – when they also out-rebounded their opponent by 23 – then Thursday could be a good day on the road for the Vikings.

GAME #16: PORTLAND STATE (5-10, 1-2) vs. NORTHERN COLORADO (12-5, 3-1)
GAME DETAILS: Thursday, Jan. 15, 5 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. MT, Greeley, Colo., (Bank of Colorado Arena)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
SCOUTING NORTHERN COLORADO: The Northern Colorado Bears posted the best non-conference record of any Big Sky team at 9-4, tied with Idaho. That includes a 72-59 home win over Kansas City, who the Vikings beat on the road in overtime. The Bears opened Big Sky play with an 86-79 home loss to Montana State, but they bounced back with three straight wins over Montana (77-58), Idaho State (67-56) and Weber State (69-66). The Bears are outperforming their preseason expectations as Big Sky coaches and media picked them to finish seventh and ninth in their respective preseason polls. The Bears have done so behind a pressure defense that ranks second in the Big Sky Conference and in the top 40 nationally in both steals (12.5) and turnovers forced (21.4) per game. The Bears also rank highly on the glass, as they rank third in the conference in rebounding margin (+5.9) and second in offensive rebounds per game (14.9). Offensively, the Bears have gotten contributions from everybody as they lead the Big Sky and rank third nationally with 33.1 bench points per game. They've been efficient offensively, as well, shooting 43.2 percent as a team to rank second in the conference. Individually, four different players average in double figures for the Bears. Neenah George leads the team with 14.2 points per game, ranking her ninth in the Big Sky Conference. Heather Baymon, Tatum West and Aniah Hall rank behind her with 11.4, 10.6 and 10.5 points per game, respectively. Baymon leads the Bears from three-point range, ranking second in the conference in both three-pointers made per game (2.12) and percentage (.367). Gabi Fields, meanwhile, has led the Bears' strength on the ball this season. She ranks third in the Big Sky with 4.1 assists per game. Fields and West also rank sixth and seventh in the conference with 2.35 and 2.18 steals per game, respectively.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Bears lead the all-time series between them and the Vikings, 27-12. They've won 22 of their last 26 meetings against the Vikings going back to March 3, 2012. Despite that, the Vikings beat the Bears, 58-52, at Viking Pavilion on Jan. 16 last season. That was the Vikings' lone Big Sky win last year.

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The Vikings lost their lone game last weekend, falling 68-64 at Sacramento State.
The Vikings came back from a nine-point halftime deficit to tie it with under five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but the Vikings gave up too many turnovers and offensive rebounds down the stretch to complete the comeback.
The Vikings outshot the Hornets .439-to.370 despite the loss. The Vikings have outshot all three Big Sky opponents so far, though they still lost two of those three games.
The Vikings had a minus-10 turnover margin against the Hornets (19-to-9). That led to a 21-16 advantage in points off turnovers for the Hornets.
The Vikings finished even with the Hornets on the glass, 40-to-40. The Hornets held a 21-to-14 advantage in offensive rebounds, though the Vikings still outscored the Hornets 18-17 in second-chance points.
Kyleigh Brown had one point on 0-for-2 shooting at halftime of Saturday's game against the Hornets, the lowest scoring half of the season for the Vikings' leading scorer. She answered by going 6-for-7 from the field in the second half when she scored 17 of her team-high 18 points.
Sacramento State had 16 more field goal attempts than the Vikings (73-to-57).
Cici Ellington recorded her second double-double in the past four games with 14 points and 11 rebounds against Idaho State Saturday. The double-double followed a career-high 16 rebounds against Weber State Thursday. The 16 rebounds were the most by a Viking since Pia Jurhar had 16 against Multnomah on Nov. 25, 2017.

Team Tendencies/Miscellany

Opponents have recorded more field goal attempts than the Vikings in 10 of 15 games this season. Opponents are averaging 5.2 more field goal attempts per game than the Vikings.
The Vikings are 4-0 when they record more field goal attempts than their opponent this season versus 1-10 when they finish with the same or fewer attempts.
The Vikings go into Thursday's game at Northern Colorado having lost 22 Big Sky road games in a row. The Vikings' last conference road victory came at Eastern Washington, 80-71, on Feb. 4, 2023.
The Vikings are outscoring opponents by 2.5 points per game in the fourth quarter this season. That includes a pair of fourth-quarter comebacks as the Vikings erased six-point and eight-point deficits in wins over Kansas City (Dec. 6) and Weber State (Jan. 1), respectively. The Vikings have been outscored in all other quarters.
The Vikings lead the Big Sky Conference in both free throws made (15.7) and attempted (21.3) per game this season. Their 21.3 attempts per game are 4.87 more per game than their opponents.
The Vikings have been outscored by an average of 4.4 points per game in the opening quarter this season. They are 4-1 when leading after the first quarter this season versus 1-9 when they're trailing. Opponents are outscoring the Vikings by an average of 7.6 points per game in the first half this season.
The Vikings are outshooting their opponents within Big Sky play, .406-to-.374. They've topped 40 percent in their last two games after only doing so five times within non-conference play.
The Vikings have attempted at least 20 free throws in nine of 15 games this season, including a season-high 40 against Kansas City on Dec. 6. For comparison's sake, the Vikings only had four games with 20+ free throws last season.
The Vikings have won the rebounding battle in seven of 15 games this season, while they finished tied with their opponent four other times. That's a significant improvement over last season, when the Vikings were out-rebounded in all but six games.
The Vikings rank sixth in the Big Sky in total rebounds per game (38.1) as well as sixth in rebounding margin (+0.73). The Vikings haven't finished a season with a positive rebounding margin since they finished the 2018-19 season at +1.0.
The Vikings rank fourth in the Big Sky with 13.7 offensive rebounds per game. They recorded 20+ offensive rebounds in back-to-back games against Kansas City and Cal State Fullerton on Dec. 6 and 13, respectively.
The Vikings are 4-0 when they score 70 points or more this season versus 1-10 when they fail to score 70 points.
The Vikings are 4-1 when winning the turnover battle versus 1-9 when they lose it. The Vikings rank fifth in the Big Sky in turnovers per game (17.3), but they rank ninth in the conference in turnovers forced per game (13.8) and 10th in turnover margin (-3.53).
Saturday's loss to the Hornets marked the first time this season the Vikings lost a game when they held their opponent below 40 percent shooting. The Vikings are still 5-1 when holding their opponent below 40 percent versus 0-9 when their opponent shoots over 40 percent.
Five different players average at least 4.0 rebounds per game for the Vikings this season. That list includes Ajae Yoakum (6.8), Cici Ellington (6.1), Hannah Chicken (6.1), Kyleigh Brown (4.3) and Laynee Torres-Kahapea (4.1).
The Vikings' five wins this season have all come on different days of the week. The Vikings are 1-2 on Tuesday, 1-1 on Wednesday, 1-0 on Thursday, 1-0 on Friday, 1-4 on Saturday and 0-3 on Sunday.

Players
#12 Kyleigh Brown

Sophomore guard Kyleigh Brown has scored in double figures in 21 straight games, the longest such streak by any player over the last 20 seasons at Portland State. She's scored 20+ six times this season.
Brown had a streak of 21 straight free throws snapped with her first attempt against Idaho State on Jan. 3. She had a streak of 26 straight free throws earlier in the season, which included a 14-for-14 performance against South Dakota on Dec. 3. That tied a program record for most makes without a miss in a single game.
Brown leads the Big Sky and ranks 12th nationally with a .905 (67-for-74) free throw percentage. That's just off the single-season program record that Esmeralda Morales set at .913 during the 2021-22 season.
Brown leads the Vikings with 18.6 points per game this season, ranking her third in the Big Sky and 42nd nationally. She has the potential to become the first Viking to average more than 20 points per game since Stacey Liebl during the 1986-87 season.
Brown ranks tied for 12th in the conference with 1.47 three-pointers made per game. She's shooting 43.1 percent (22-for-51) from three-point range this season.
Brown ranks sixth in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.438).
Brown is averaging a career-best 4.3 rebounds per game, nearly one more per game than she averaged as a freshman.
Brown leads the Vikings while ranking 10th in the Big Sky with 31.6 minutes played per game.
Brown was the OSAA 5A State Player of the Year as a senior at Silverton High School when she led her team to the 5A state title in 2024.

#8 Cici Ellington

Cici Ellington has recorded two double-doubles out of the team's last five games. She recorded 14 points and 11 rebounds against Idaho State on Jan. 3. Her first double-double came against Seattle U on Dec. 17, when she led the Vikings with 18 points and 14 rebounds. That was her first double-double since Jan. 8, 2022, when she was playing at Grambling State.
Ellington shot a seasonal best 6-for-9 from the field last Saturday at Sacramento State. Her 13 points against the Hornets marked her third time in double figures out of the Vikings' last five games.
Ellington set a career high with 16 rebounds against Weber State on Jan. 1, recording the most rebounds by a Viking since Pia Jurhar had 16 against Multnomah on Nov. 25, 2017.
Ellington is averaging 12.0 points and 9.8 rebounds per game over the Vikings' last five games.
Ellington ranks 14th in the Big Sky Conference with 6.07 rebounds per game. She ranks 15th in both offensive (1.86) and defensive (4.21) rebounds per game.
Ellington's average of 9.6 points per game this season is her best since her true freshman season at Loyola Marymount when she averaged 11.5 points per game. Ellington played 19 games during the 2021-22 season at Grambling State but then missed all but one game over the next two years due to injury. She returned from the injury absence while playing for the Vikings last season, when she averaged 6.7 points per game.
Ellington is 12 points away from reaching 1,000 points over her entire collegiate career. She is also 25 rebounds away from reaching 500 in her career.
Ellington ranks tied for ninth in the Big Sky with 0.86 blocks per game.
Ellington was a West Coast Conference All-Freshman Team selection at Loyola Marymount following the 2019-20 season.
Ellington was named the OSAA 6A State Co-Player of the Year in 2019, sharing the award with future NCAA national champion and Los Angeles Sparks player Cameron Brink. Ellington and her Benson Polytechnic High School team – that included fellow Viking Ajae Yoakum – beat Brink and two-time defending champion Southridge in the 2019 state championship game.

#9 Hannah Chicken

Freshman Hannah Chicken scored in double figures for the seventh straight game and 11th out of the last 13 with 11 points against Sacramento State last Saturday.
Chicken is 4-for-5 (.800) from three-point range over the Vikings' last two games. She went 3-for-4 from distance against Idaho State on Jan. 3, then went 1-for-1 against Sacramento State last Saturday.
Chicken recorded the first double-double of her career with 15 points and 10 rebounds against Cal State Fullerton on Dec. 13. She nearly had a second with 17 points and nine rebounds against Weber State on Jan. 1.
Chicken ranks second on the team with 11.2 points per game. That would be the best average by a PSU freshman since Esmeralda Morales averaged 12.5 points per game during the 2021-22 season.
Chicken ranks 13th in the Big Sky with 6.13 rebounds per game. She also ranks tied for 10th in the Big Sky with 2.20 offensive rebounds per game.
Chicken leads the Vikings with a .496 field goal percentage this season. She's shot 60.0 percent or better from the field seven times this season.
Chicken leads the Vikings with 1.73 steals per game, ranking her 14th in the Big Sky Conference.
Chicken ranks second on the team in free throw percentage while shooting 82.2 percent (37-for-45) from the line. She doesn't meet the minimum requirements of 2.5 makes per game in order to be ranked, however.
Head coach Karlie Burris said of Chicken after a game during the first month of the season: "She's at the beginning of how good she's going to be."
Chicken and fellow freshman Sophie Buzzard are roommates, making for a very bird-friendly dorm room at Portland State University.
Chicken is one of three Australians on the Vikings' roster, joining Kailee Field from Brisbane and Taylor Moffat from Mount Barker, Australia. Chicken is from Taree, Australia.

#5 Ajae Yoakum

Ajae Yoakum grabbed 12 rebounds, five on the offensive end in the Vikings' loss at Sacramento State last Saturday. It was her third game with 10+ rebounds this season.
Yoakum has two double-doubles this season. The first came with 11 points and 14 rebounds (tying a career high) against Kansas City on Dec. 6. The second came with 10 points and 12 rebounds against Seattle U on Dec. 17. Both double-doubles came in Portland State wins.
Yoakum leads the Vikings while ranking 10th in the Big Sky Conference with 6.77 rebounds per game. She also ranks eighth in the conference with 2.69 offensive rebounds per game.
Yoakum ranks 15th in the Big Sky with 30.2 minutes played per game.
Yoakum reached 1,000-career points over her entire collegiate career with a field goal late in the third quarter against San Jose State on Nov. 28.
Yoakum scored a season-high 20 points on 9-for-12 shooting from the field to go with a career high-tying three blocks in the Vikings' win over Willamette on Nov. 11.
Yoakum is finishing her career in her native Portland after previous stops at Eastern Arizona (2020-22), FIU (2022-24) and Arizona (2024-25). She won an Oregon 6A State title in 2019 with her Portland State teammate Cici Ellington when both were at Benson Polytechnic High School.

#11 Laynee Torres-Kahapea

Laynee Torres-Kahapea has recorded five assists in three of the Vikings' last five games. She's averaging 4.00 assists per game over the last five games.
Torres-Kahapea tied her career high with three three-pointers against Seattle U on Dec. 17 while finishing with 13 points, five rebounds and five assists. She's averaging just 2.5 points per game in the four games since then, however.
Torres-Kahapea – despite being just five-feet, six-inches tall – is averaging a career-best 4.1 rebounds per game. That's 1.3 more per game than her previous career-best average (2.8 as a sophomore).
In her first game back in her native Hawai'i, Torres-Kahapea – the 2023 Hawai'i State Gatorade Player of the Year – scored a career-high 22 points while also setting career highs for field goals (6), field goal percentage (.750), free throws (8) and rebounds (6, since broken).
Torres-Kahapea ranks second on the team with 13 made three-pointers this season while shooting 13-for-47 (.277) from beyond the arc.
Torres-Kahapea leads the Vikings while ranking 15th in the Big Sky with 2.60 assists per game. She had a career-high seven assists against San Jose State on Nov. 28.
Torres-Kahapea ranks 14th in the Big Sky with 30.6 minutes played per game. That's actually down from last season when she led the conference with 35.8 minutes per game.

#23 Taylor Moffat

Taylor Moffat has started the last eight games for the Vikings. She averaged 6.25 points per game over her first four starts but is averaging just 2.0 points per game over the last four.
Moffat went 8-for-16 (.500) from three-point range over her first four starts but is 1-for-8 from three-point range over her last four games.
Moffat set or tied season highs for points (9), three-pointers (3), rebounds (3), assists and steals (2) against Seattle U on Dec. 17.
Moffat returned from an 11-month injury absence to play 14 minutes in the Vikings' season opener at Hawai'i on Nov. 4. She returned to the scoring column against Willamette on Nov. 11, finishing with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting to go with two rebounds and three assists.
Moffat had been out since tearing her ACL in the Vikings' game against Denver on Dec. 7, 2024.

#4 Sophie Buzzard

Freshman Sophie Buzzard scored in double figures in back-to-back games with 10 points against both Kansas City (Dec. 6) and Cal State Fullerton (Dec. 13).
Buzzard recorded one of her better all-around games at Sacramento State last Saturday, totaling nine points, three rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
Buzzard ranks fourth on the team in both free throws made (26) and attempted (35) this season.
Buzzard scored 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting in her collegiate debut against Hawai'i on Nov. 4. Her 20 points were the most by a Viking freshman in their first collegiate game since Esmeralda Morales opened with 32 points against Warner Pacific on Nov. 9, 2022.
Buzzard and fellow freshman Hannah Chicken are roommates, making for a very bird-friendly dorm room at Portland State University.

#10 Kirstine Munk

Kirstine Munk set PSU/Division I career highs for points (11), rebounds (6), assists (2), and steals (2) in the Vikings' loss to Air Force on Nov. 18. She was 3-for-5 from the field against the Falcons, and 5-for-5 from the free throw line. Munk is 4-for-26 from the field outside of the Air Force game, however.
Munk started the first nine games of the season for the Vikings before coming off the bench for every game since. The nine starts were the first Division I starts of her career. Munk started 26 of 28 games while at Central Arizona, a junior college, during the 2023-24 season.

Additional Players

Katelyn Best scored a career-high 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field against Willamette on Nov. 11. She's averaging 1.4 points per game this season.
Alani Encinas started the first two games of the season. She's only appeared in six of the 13 games since then, however, while averaging 5.6 minutes played per game this season.
Jamia Carter saw her first action of the season at Cal State Fullerton on Dec. 13. She had been out with a knee injury since the Vikings' game against Montana State on Feb. 1 last season. Carter is averaging 1.2 points per game while playing 5.6 minutes per game.

Coaching Staff

Karlie Burris earned the first win of her head coaching career with an 89-52 victory over Willamette on Nov. 11.
Burris is a first-time head coach. She spent the past four years as an assistant coach at UNLV where she helped the Lady Rebels win four straight Mountain West Conference regular-season titles (2022-25), as well as three Mountain West Conference tournament titles (2022-24).
Burris outlined three areas of focus for the Vikings this season: 1) Transition offense and defense; 2) Rebounding; and 3) Execution. Execution is an umbrella term for winning the turnover battle, executing the scouting report, and holding the opposing team's best player to under 17 points.
Burris said of the lack of expectations on her team this year: "We're going to be the hunters this year at Portland State. We're super excited about that. No one has any expectations for us, other than ourselves. And we're excited to be the hunters. That's a good spot to be. You get to play really hard with reckless abandon and really not worry about the result because all the expectations are on the other team. It's a fun place to be. It's hunting season."
Assistant coach Raina Perez is a former finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award, which honors the nation's best point guard. She made the finalist list while at NC State where she was part of runs to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

General/Preseason Info

The Vikings returned nine letterwinners and had four incoming freshmen already committed to the roster when Karlie Burris was named head coach. Burris' one addition to the 2025-26 roster was Ajae Yoakum, who signed with the Vikings in April.
The Vikings were picked to finish tied for ninth and 10th in the Big Sky Conference in the preseason coaches and media polls, respectively. The Vikings have finished 10th in the conference three of the past four seasons.
The Vikings feature only one player listed as taller than six feet in Katelyn Best, who stands 6-3. However, the Vikings have five players listed at six feet exactly in Hannah Chicken, Cici Ellington, Kirstine Munk, Brooklyn Strandy and Ajae Yoakum.
The Vikings have three players who won Oregon state titles in high school. Ellington and Yoakum won the 2019 OSAA 6A state title with Benson Polytechnic High School. Ellington was named the OSAA 6A State Co-Player of the Year that year alongside current WNBA player Cameron Brink. Kyleigh Brown, meanwhile, won the 5A state title with Silverton High School in 2024 when she was also named the OSAA 5A State Player of the Year.
The Vikings signed a five-player recruiting class this fall that features the 2025 Hawai'i State Gatorade Player of the Year in Nihoa Dunn. She'll join Torres-Kahapea, who won the award in 2023, in giving the Vikings two Hawai'i State Gatorade Players of the Year on the roster next season. Dunn is also one of two state champions in the Vikings' recruiting class along with Alex Padilla, who won an Oregon 6A state title with Tualatin High School. Emma Zuniga, from West Salem High School, represents a second Oregon product in the recruiting class, while Liv Collins and Aspen McClees will join the Vikings from Sumner, Wash., and Gilbert, Ariz., respectively.