The Portland State women’s basketball team needed to win their final two games to clinch the last spot in the Big Sky Tournament. The Vikings opened the weekend in the right fashion with a home win to the Montana Grizzlies, but the road got the best of the Vikings as the Northern Colorado Bears defeated the Vikings in their final must-win. For the first time since 2005, the Portland State Vikings will not be appearing in the Big Sky Tournament.
The Portland State women’s basketball team needed to win their final two games to clinch the last spot in the Big Sky Tournament. The Vikings opened the weekend in the right fashion with a home win to the Montana Grizzlies, but the road got the best of the Vikings as the Northern Colorado Bears defeated the Vikings in their final must-win. For the first time since 2005, the Portland State Vikings will not be appearing in the Big Sky Tournament.
Where the Vikings, who ended with a 7-9 conference record, faltered on Saturday, they came up big on Thursday. The senior night game highlighted the three Vikings leaving the park blocks—guard Eryn Jones and forwards Shauneice Samms and Stephanie Egwuatu.
“Last year our seniors lost on the floor to Montana, so they remember that,” head coach Sherri Murrell said. “We talked about that, so that was a really special [win] because Montana is a really good team.”
The game started out slowly, and the Vikings struggled to get a lead. The teams went into the locker room tied at 26.
“We kind of dug ourselves into a hole in the beginning and fought back and we really talked to them and said ‘Don’t play even with them,’” Murrell said, “but I felt like we made some defensive stops which forced them to make shots that were rushed.”
Jones added to her coach’s comment about defense.
“I think our posts did really well,” Jones said. “We were trapping their low posts. They couldn’t really handle the pressure that our posts brought down low.”
Jones led the team in her final appearance on the Viking home court with 17 points. Jones ended her Viking years with 10 top-10 records in career performances. Samms finished the game with 10 points and two key blocked shots. Egwuatu pulled down five points and saw her eighth start of her career.
“It’s great to go out on a win,” Jones said. “I am so happy. It’s really bittersweet knowing that it’s the last time I will play here.”
Unfortunately, the celebration of the victory was short lived. The Vikings fell dramatically to the Northern Colorado Bears on Saturday night, giving Sacramento State the final bid for the Big Sky Tournament. The Vikings failed to get even with the Bears.
The Vikings opened with cold shooting and shot 2-for-17 field goal attempts in the beginning of the first half. The Bears went into the locker room up 32-20 and built their lead in the opening minutes of the second half to a 16-point difference. The Vikings pushed back to bring the score within seven, but the second-ranked Bears never let the Vikings get any closer. The Bears finished the Vikings’ season with a 65-50 win.
“It was just a tough way to end the season,” Jones said. “And it’s not how we wanted to go out, but I’m still proud of our team.”
Sophomore guard Kate Lanz led the Vikings with a near double-double of 16 points and eight rebounds. Jones had just five points and six assists. Samms came out big on her last night in green and black with 13 points, seven rebounds and an impressive four blocked shots.
After being picked to win the conference in pre-season polls, the last-minute fall out of the playoffs seems particularly cruel for the Vikings. With injuries plaguing key starters, the Vikings struggled throughout the season to get a clear game plan on the court. In the past the Vikings have found solace at the Stott Center, but this season they lost four of eight home conference games, including a crucial loss to the Sacramento State Hornets.
That loss limited the Vikings’ chances at a post-season appearance as Sacramento State was the Vikings’ last team standing in the way of the sixth and final tournament slot. That loss combined with a Hornet upset victory to Big Sky conference winner Idaho State, and the Viking loss to Northern Colorado gave the Hornets their tournament bid.
