Portland State heads south to Utah

The Portland State softball team headed to Utah to face Pacific Coast Softball Conference newcomer and division-rival Weber State in a four-game series today and tomorrow.

Weber State, which last faced the Vikings in 1982, comes into the series holding a 1-41 record, with their lone win against conference opponent Utah Valley earlier this month. 

The Wildcats, who have revitalized a softball program left dormant since 1983, have struggled mightily in their first season in the PCSC. Weber State can attribute much of its struggle to a pitching staff that has allowed 10 or more runs 25 times this season, leading to an unsightly team ERA of 9.83. 

Britinie Hardine has been the lone bright spot in the Wildcats’ rotation in conference action, as she enters this weekend’s series with a 3.71 ERA in 17 innings pitched in the PCSC. Hardine has struck out 12 batters to only four walks in 17 innings of conference play, but has allowed 12 extra-base hits in that span.  

Hardine is also the focal point of the Wildcat offense, as she leads the team with an on-base plus slugging percentage of 1.056 and is tied for second in the PCSC in home runs with 10. As a whole, the Weber State offense has put together a .244 average and has clubbed 20 home runs. 

As has been the case the entire season, Portland State will look to ride the pitching and defense of its club as it looks to avoid a letdown after sweeping two conference opponents at home.

Freshman pitcher Anna Bertrand won her third PCSC Mountain Division Pitcher of the Week award this week, after striking out 16 Idaho State batters in Game 1 of last weekend’s series while holding the Bengals to one unearned run in 14 innings. 

Bertrand’s weekly honor is the Vikings’ sixth for a pitcher and ninth overall. Despite being a freshman, Bertrand has dominated the PCSC and leads in nearly every statistical category. Her 164 strikeouts are 50 more than her nearest competition, and her 1.65 ERA is nearly a run lower than Saint Mary’s Britany Linton’s 2.64 ERA. 

Bertrand, however, has not been alone in conference play, as Portland State’s entire pitching staff has shut down conference opponents. The Vikings’ conference ERA is barely visible through a microscope, sitting at 0.76, while the staff as a whole has only allowed one home run in 83.0 innings.

The Vikings will no doubt need to continue the sterling pitching that’s been their trademark all season against a team that has little left to play for except stealing games from conference opponents. With a sweep, the Vikings could even their overall record at 24-24 and shake away impressions that Portland State has had a sub-par run this season. 

“You look at our record and most people think we’re having an off-year, but I don’t think it’s really indicative of what kind of team we really are,” head coach Tobin Echo-Hawk said last weekend.