The Portland State volleyball team’s season came to an end this weekend, as the Vikings fell to the Northern Colorado Bears in the Big Sky Tournament Championship on Saturday at the Stott Center. The Bears swept the Vikings in three-straight sets to capture the tournament title and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Portland State overcame Sacramento State with a 3-1 win in the semi-finals on Friday, however, home-court advantage throughout the tournament wasn’t enough to carry the Vikings past the Bears.
The Vikings finished the 2011 season with a record of 12-4 in conference and 18-13 overall. The team fought against the odds just enough to qualify for the tournament; a season that started with a nine-match losing streak heading into conference play, a roster with seven freshman and the graduation of their 2010 Big Sky MVP hitter.
“We did have a tough pre-season, but I think we just worked as hard as we could every day,” sophomore setter Garyn Schlatter said. “A lot of people didn’t expect us to make it this far, so I am proud of everybody and happy we made it this far.”
Schlatter alongside senior libero Nicole Bateham were named to the Big Sky All-Tournament team. Schlatter completed her junior season against the Bears with her fourth consecutive double-double, recording 19 assists and 10 digs. Bateham led the team with 16 digs.
Portland State was the hottest team in the Big Sky entering into the final, as the Vikings had won 10 of 11 and 14 of its last 17 matches, including a five-match win streak, the team’s longest of the season. Head coach Michael Seemann said prior to the match that playing from behind against a team of Northern Colorado’s quality would be difficult, something the Vikings found out first hand in Saturday’s championship match.
The Bears quickly took control of the game, jumping out to an early eight-point lead. The Vikings closed the gap to five points momentarily, but Northern Colorado’s defense was the difference, only allowing a 0.78 hitting percentage in the first set. The Bears continued their aggressive play into the next frame, decisively taking the second set 25-13.
In the third and final set of the Vikings’ season, the team fought to keep the score within three for most of the match, pulling even with the Bears at eight-all. However, a 6-1 run by the Bears mid-way through the frame put the Vikings behind 16-12 and the team wasn’t able to recover, losing 25-20.
The Vikings’ leading offensive threat, junior outside hitter Megan Ellis, came into the match averaging 3.81 kills per set, but led the team with only six kills against the Bears. Sophomore Aubrey Mitchell and freshman Leigh-Ann Haataja had six kills each as well.
“They’re just a great team, they played great ball and they were just one step ahead of us,” Schlatter said of Northern Colorado. “They play a fast game and they were on top of their game tonight.”
Northern Colorado outplayed Portland State in nearly all categories, including blocking and hitting percentage, two of the key factors Seemann emphasized prior to the match. Junior hitter and 2011 Big Sky MVP KelleyArnold led the Bears with 14 kills and a .458 hitting percentage. Junior setter Marissa Hughes added a double-double with 42 assists and 14 digs. Hughes was named the tournament MVP.
This was the third time in three years that Portland State and Northern Colorado have faced each other in the Big Sky championship match. The Bears won their first championship back in 2009 and the Vikings bounced back with a championship in 2010. However, the Vikings went 0-3 against the Bears in 2011.
Portland State headed into the conference championship carrying plenty of momentum after advancing past Sacramento State 3-1 on Friday night. In a close frame in which neither team led by more than two points, Sacramento State rallied late to take a 25-21 opening set win.
The second set mirrored the first, but the Vikings made the big plays at the end to win 25-22. Portland State took full control of the game in the final two frames, never looking back or giving up a lead in the fourth set. The Vikings won both sets 25-19.
“We got a couple key blocks and I think timely blocking changes momentum so that was big,” Seemann said. Sacramento State’s “a very tough serving team and I thought we returned a lot of the aces that they had earlier in the match because we got some hands on it and got swings on it, so that helped a lot.”
Ellis led the team with 17 kills and 13 digs. Schlatter registered a double-double with 35 assists and 17 digs. Haataja, who led the Vikings with a .500 hitting percentage on the night, said that the team knew they had to fight with their backs against the wall.
“We realized that this was it, and this was not going to be our last game; that was our mentality,” Haataja said. “When we came out slow at first, it kind of gave us a reality check that it wasn’t going to be easy, so we need to push hard and play every ball like it’s the last ball we are going to play.”
Despite coming up short in the conference tournament, the volleyball program had another successful season, as the Vikings played in the Big Sky championship for the fifth straight season. Portland State is 8-7 all-time in the Big Sky tournament, including 7-2 under Seemann’s tenure.
“All of us contributed so much this season,” Haataja said. “And for us to be able to reach out to anyone, and when you don’t have to rely on one person, that’s what made our team so great.