FULLERTON, Calif. – Riding the momentum from their first win of the season Saturday night, the Portland State softball team outlasted CSUN, 8-5 in Sunday's weekend finale at the Easton Classic.

After dropping their first three games of the tournament, the Vikings bounced back with two straight wins to close out the weekend, leaving Fullerton with a 2-3 record.

Looking to avenge Friday's loss to the Matadors (1-4), the Vikings scored in four of their six at-bats on Sunday, but CSUN kept them on edge, clawing back from a three-run deficit to take the lead midway through the game.

The Vikings opened the day by loading the bases with a hit by pitch and back-to-back singles before Mia Martinez drew a walk to give Portland State a 1-0 lead. CSUN answered in the top of the second, tying the game at one. Portland State responded immediately in the bottom of the second, with RBIs from Nichole Orozco, Breanna Lutz, and Alison Harris pushing the Vikings ahead 4-1.

CSUN countered in the top of the third, scoring four runs to take their first lead of the afternoon at 5-4. It was then Portland State's Gracie Toney that answered, tying the game at five with a solo home run in the bottom half of the inning. 

The score remained 5-5 as Viking starter Gracie Walters settled into a groove on the rubber, silencing the Matador bats and giving her offense a chance to retake the lead. The Vikings did just that in the fifth, adding three runs on two hits and a Matador error to go up 8-5. Walters took it from there, allowing just one baserunner over the final two innings to secure the victory.

Portland State tallied nine hits—their most of the weekend—highlighted by three multi-hit performances as Lutz, Toney, and Jolee Benson each had two hits. Lutz drove in a team-high two runs, while five other Vikings added RBIs in the win. Walters went the distance in the circle for the second time this weekend, striking out four in her complete-game effort.

The Vikings will look to carry their momentum into next week at the Littlewood Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. (Feb. 12–15). They'll open the tournament on Thursday, Feb. 12, with a doubleheader against Indiana at 11:45 a.m. PT and Arizona State at 2:30 p.m. PT.