Portland State University Athletics

PORTLAND, Ore. — Like a snowball rolling down a hill that grows layer by layer, the Portland State volleyball team extended its win streak to four matches Thursday, beating Eastern Washington in four sets, 3-1 (25-23, 25-14, 18-25, 25-17), at Viking Pavilion.
 
The Vikings (10-12, 6-5) began their current win streak with a 3-0 road sweep of the Eagles (9-14, 3-8) on Oct. 17. But the two matches couldn't have been more different. The two leading killers in the previous match – Maryn Hall for the Vikings, Kalista Lukovich for the Eagles – both picked up injuries since the first meeting and were out Thursday.
 
The Vikings made up for the absence of Hall with a strong defensive showing. Five different Vikings went into double figures for digs – the first time that's happened in four years, going back to a match against Northern Arizona on Oct. 27, 2022. The Vikings set a four-set match high with 83 digs as a result, 15 more than they've had in any other four-set match this season.
 
"Our defense just feels very anchored. It feels very, very solid, which is great," Portland State head coach Michael Seemann said afterwards.
 
"We touched up a lot of their balls. We didn't terminate blocks, but we touched up a lot of their balls and then, you know, [our back row] put us right in system. So, it allowed us to get some offense, even though those didn't always result in kills."
 
The defensive showing came as the Vikings primarily played in a 5-1 formation. That allowed libero/defensive specialists Jessica Truong and Paige Stepaniuk to play alongside each other. The pair – affectionately nicknamed "the littles" by the team – responded to lead the Vikings with 18 and 17 digs, respectively.
 
Half of Truong's 18 digs came in the fourth set when she helped carry the Vikings over the finish line. The Eagles had hit lights out in the third set, outhitting the Vikings .343-to-.102 in the frame. The Vikings played a little tight at the beginning of the fourth set, too, as the Eagles used a 4-0 run to tie things up at 5-5 early in the set. But the Vikings gave themselves breathing room with an 8-1 run of their own a few points later. The Eagles never got closer than four points the rest of the way.
 
The Vikings got out in front with a comeback in the first set. As much as the 5-1 formation helped the defense, the offense took some time to gel. They were hitting in the negative by the media timeout of the opening set, while the Vikings fell behind 17-13. The Vikings switched into a 6-2 formation a few points later, with Katarina Kosic and Asya Akbulut both making an impact off the bench.
 
Akbulut put down an ace on the second point of a 6-0 PSU run that turned a three-point deficit into a three-point lead at 22-19. Kosic had two kills herself during the run, while Brenna Coffman capped it with a kill.
 
"We've shown in the last two or three matches that we're gonna do it. We're gonna throw up two people and give teams a different look," Seemann said of the switch to the 6-2 in the first set. "Katia came in and produced two quick kills, while Asya's serve is a little different than everyone else's."
 
Ashley Repetti recorded a kill on her lone attack in the set to close it out a few points later.
 
The Vikings went back to the 5-1 formation for the second set where they rolled. The Vikings led 6-1 out of the gates and never looked back from there. Coffman recorded three kills on four swings out of the middle, while setter Ava Blascziek kept the Eagles honest with three kills on five swings.
 
Blascziek finished with a career-high five kills in the match while adding a double-double of 37 assists and 14 digs. Repetti and Alivia Eikenberg recorded two more double-doubles for the Vikings. Eikenberg led all players with 14 kills in the match while adding 11 digs. Repetti, meanwhile, finished with 10 kills and 11 digs for the second double-double of her career.
 
The most effective offense came from the middle and right-side hitters. Willow Watson recorded 12 kills on .375 hitting from the right. She's been a bellwether for the Vikings this season, as the team is now 5-1 when Watson records 10+ kills, including a perfect 4-0 within Big Sky play.
 
"If you're an [opposing team] middle and Willow is not on or whatever it is, you just simply start going [towards the left sides]. But if we're able to get production out of her, even out of system, then you keep those middles honest and should create gaps for both pins," Seemann said of Watson's effect on the offense.
 
Coffman and Reese Biesemeyer both hit efficiently out of the middle. Coffman totaled eight kills on .353 hitting while Biesemeyer finished with seven kills on .333 hitting. Blascziek's five kills came on .417 hitting.
 
The back-row defense helped set the Vikings up for success against the Eagles. They'll need strong passing again Saturday, when they host an Idaho team they lost to in four sets on Oct. 15. They started their win streak two days after that match, and the ball has been rolling down the hill ever since.
 
MATCH NOTES:

• The Vikings have won two in a row over the Eagles and five of their last six matches. They lead the all-time series between the teams, 40-32.
• The Eagles out-blocked the Vikings 9.0-to-3.0 at the net. The Eagles came into the match leading the Big Sky with 2.70 blocks per set.
• The Vikings out-aced the Eagles 6-to-3 with five different players accounting for the Vikings' six aces.

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