Sputtering in Montana

Heading into their weekend road trip against Montana and Montana State, the Vikings were not accustomed to coming up short against Big Sky opponents, as they had suffered only one defeat to a conference foe all season.

But thanks to the two Montana schools, as they are referred to in many Big Sky circles, the Vikings received quite a baptism in being defeated by conference opponents, dropping games to Montana Thursday and Montana State Saturday.

The two losses drop the Vikings (15-6, 5-3 BSC) into a third place tie with Montana State and Northern Colorado in the Big Sky Conference standings at the midpoint of the conference schedule.

After trailing conference powerhouse Montana (16-4, 6-1 BSC) by as much as 17 points in the second half, the Vikings rallied to force overtime, only to succumb to the Grizzlies, 77-73. Two days later against Montana State (10-10, 5-3), Portland State stumbled again, this time in less dramatic fashion, 84-75.

“The game against Montana really drained us, emotionally and physically,” said head coach Sherri Murrell.

The Vikings were never able to slow the offense of Montana State (10-10, 5-3), as the Bobcats had five players in double digits, led by senior guard Rebecca Mercer with 22 points. Sophomore guard Jenny Heringer also contributed heavily, adding 18 points, nine rebounds and three assists.

Despite cutting the Montana State lead to just one point with eight minutes remaining, the Vikings were never able to fully erase the Bobcats’ advantage, marking the second time in two games Portland State dug itself too deep of a hole. Montana State extinguished the comeback hopes by hitting seven free throws in the final two minutes to solidify the victory.

“Defensively we were not very sound,” said Murrell. “We made some fundamental mistakes and put ourselves in a tough spot.”

Portland State junior forward Kelsey Kahle earned her seventh double-double of the season, and responded from her tough night against the Montana with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Senior forward Delaney Conway poured in a team-high 20 points and grabbed five rebounds in the Vikings’ sixth road loss of the season.

Even with Conway and Kahle’s performance, Portland State struggled to establish an interior presence, losing the rebounding battle 46-33. Montana State was able to corral 18 offensive rebounds, part of the reason it outscored the Vikings 46-37 in the final 20 minutes.

Although the losses add haziness to the conference picture for Portland State, Viking fans can take some solace in the notion that Portland State will host Montana, Northern Colorado and Montana State during the second half of the season. Playing in the Stott Center has proven advantageous for the Vikings, as Portland State’s home record sits at 10-0 on the season.

The Vikings will look to continue their strong play at home this weekend, as they take on Northern Arizona Thursday night and Sacramento State Saturday afternoon.

While losing two consecutive games and falling a few spots in the conference standings is hardly a positive, the squad welcomes the opportunity to improve.

“We learned some lessons this weekend, and sometimes going through some adversity can be very rewarding for a team,” Murrell said.