Portland State University Athletics

MISSOULA, Mont. — You win a fight by landing one more punch than your opponent, and the Portland State volleyball team did just that Saturday, winning a back-and-forth five-set match, 3-2 (25-16, 16-25, 25-20, 22-25, 15-8), over Montana at Dahlberg Arena.
 
The victory extends the Vikings' win streak to seven straight matches, tying the best win streak by a Portland State team since the Vikings won a Division I program-record 10 in a row between Oct. 28 and Nov. 29, 2013.
 
Out of all the remarkable things about the Vikings' current win streak, perhaps the most remarkable is that four of the seven wins have come on the road. Saturday's victory over the Grizzlies marked the second five-set road victory in that stretch. That's a remarkable turnaround for a Portland State team that had lost 12 straight matches on the road before starting their current win streak with a 3-0 road sweep at Eastern Washington on Oct. 17.
 
"They have a certain belief that we can win, even in tough environments. Tonight, we did just that," Portland State head coach Michael Seeman said afterwards.
 
Saturday's victory came as the Vikings (13-12, 9-5) alternated sets leading up to the fifth set. The Vikings won sets one and three, while the Grizzlies (7-18, 3-11) answered in sets two and four. The first two sets were mirrors of each other so much so that both teams won their respective set, 25-16, while both were hitting .162 by the end of the second.
 
But the Vikings had one more punch in their repertoire, taking an early lead in the fifth set that they would never relinquish. Early leads proved critical throughout Saturday's match. Out of all five sets, only one featured a lead change. That was the third set, and it still only featured two lead changes at that.
 
So, the Vikings' 4-0 lead early in the fifth set got them out on the right foot. Middle blockers Reese Biesemeyer and Brenna Coffman led the way for the Vikings in the final frame. Biesemeyer recorded kills on three of the Vikings' first six points in the set, while Coffman added three of her own. Coffman's last kill gave the Vikings a 12-6 lead, and they'd trade points from there to close out the win.
 
"We sided out at 100 percent [in the fifth set], which is a credit to our passing," Seemann said afterwards. That wasn't an exaggeration, either. The Vikings never let the Grizzlies win two points in a row in the fifth set. They won while hitting .421 as a team in the fifth set, recording nine kills against only one error.
 
It was a similar story at the start of the match when the Vikings outhit the Grizzlies .267-to-.061 in the first set. Coffman and Ashley Repetti both recorded five kills without committing an attack error in the opening frame. It was the start of a career night for Repetti, who finished the match with career highs for kills (15) and digs (17) while hitting .308 in the match.
 
The Vikings couldn't muster the same offense in the second set. After a somewhat slow start to the third set, too, the Vikings shifted into a 6-2 formation and found immediate results. Katarina Kosic subbed on with setter Asya Akbulut, and Kosic put down three kills in a 5-0 run that put the Vikings in the lead for good in the frame.
 
Kosic finished with five kills on .556 hitting in the third set. Her presence also opened things up for other Vikings as the team hit .351 with 17 kills in the third set alone.
 
The Grizzlies slowed down the Vikings' 6-2 formation in the fourth set, but by then the Vikings had shifted back into a 5-1 for the rest of the match. The formation changes worked out for Seemann, who earned the 200th conference win of his career with the victory.
 
"We have been adaptable all year. Tonight, that served us very well. Everyone came in and contributed," Seemann said of the formation changes.
 
Coffman and Biesemeyer joined Repetti in double figures for kills. Coffman recorded 12 kills on .259 hitting to go with five blocks, setting a season and career high with 14.5 points in the match. Biesemeyer, meanwhile, recorded a season-high 11 kills on .500 hitting to go with four blocks.
 
Defensively, Paige Stepaniuk matched Repetti for the team lead with 17 digs, while Jessica Truong added 11 digs of her own.
 
Saturday's victory marked the Vikings' first win in Missoula since 2021, which was also the last time the Vikings had swept the Montana road trip. That road win in 2021 also came in five sets over the Grizzlies, with the Vikings landing one more punch than the hosts then, too.
 
"I'm proud of how we played on the road this weekend," Seemann said. "This is always a tough trip, especially late in the season, and we dug in and got it done."
 
MATCH NOTES:

• Saturday's victory over the Grizzlies was their 60th all-time over Montana. They are now 60-22 all-time against the Grizzlies while they lead the Big Sky series, 36-20.
• Repetti is the third different Viking to record a 15-15 match this season. Alivia Eikenberg had two back-to-back on the opening weekend of the season against Portland (15k, 15d) and Nevada (23k, 20d). Maryn Hall then had a 20-20 match with 26 kills and 21 digs against Northern Arizona on Oct. 20.
• The Grizzlies actually out-killed the Vikings 63-to-62, but the Vikings were more efficient, outhitting Montana .234-to-.184.

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