Author: Skyler Archibald

Invited to participate in the third annual Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Challenge game on Jan. 31 in El Paso, Texas, was Vikings senior linebacker Andy Schantz.

Most times in sports, accomplishing the unthinkable—winning championships, breaking records and, hardest of all, changing perceptions—means facing the unavoidable letdown that invariably comes after the accomplishment.

Never in the history of basketball on the campus of Portland State have the two basketball squads carried more momentum and excitement after just one-third of the conference season completed.

With each step taken forward by the three gym-confined programs at Portland State—volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball—the Peter W. Stott Center gets exposed like a rat scurrying for cover when the basement light comes on.

As basketball practice heats up, Head Coach Ken Bone instructs the team to split into separate groups with big men lumbering down the court to work on interior moves and the perimeter players conducting a shooting drill on the near basket.

Behind a strong performance from junior quarterback Tim Tebow and a stifling defensive effort, Florida defeated Oklahoma in the BCS Championship at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Fla.

The last time Portland State fans watched their men’s basketball squad play in the Stott Center, the team struggled to victories over Seattle, a program transitioning from Division II to Division I, and Lewis and Clark, a Division III program.

The Vikings have started conference play at the top of the Big Sky standings having won their first three of this season and 17 straight dating back to last season.

While the Wildcats have struggled of late, losing their last three games, including their conference opener to Northern Colorado, the Vikings have won four of their last five and have jumped to a 2-0 conference record.

Just one week after setting school history by clinching a spot in the NCAA Volleyball Championships, a physically over-matched Portland State squad was easily disposed of by the Washington Huskies.

As junior middle blocker Erica Jepsen slammed the ball down for the deciding point in Portland State’s four-set victory Saturday, the Stott Center erupted into pandemonium. The scene was eerily similar to the one that occurred slightly over a year earlier, when the Vikings beat Sacramento State in an important four-set match.