Volleyball team faces Eastern Washington

There will be a winner and a loser, a contender and a pretender. On Saturday, Oct. 15 at 1 p.m., Portland State takes on Eastern Washington in an epic match that could make or break the season. After four straight conference victories the Vikings look to push it to five, establishing them as a contender in a conference comprised of quality teams.

However, the Vikings have yet to beat the Eagles in conference play, creating a prime opportunity for retribution and a chance to get a monkey off their back. Portland State and Eastern Washington are deadlocked at second place in the Big Sky standings, each trailing Sacramento State by just one victory.

A man that has done his fair share of winning, garnering championships on four separate occasions, casts some light on this pivotal game. Explaining that it may not be as important, in the sense of playoff contention, as the standings reflect, head coach Jeff Mozzochi weighs in. 

“No match is bigger than another. We need to focus on one match at a time,” Mozzochi said. “To put more emphasis on one match is not in our best interest right now.”

Though Mozzochi believes that each match, at least at this point in the season, has the same amount of importance for his team, he is aware that the Eagles present some challenges.

“They are a team with great tradition and are used to winning. When they play in their system the have one of the most potent offenses,” he said. “It is going to be up to us to get them to play out of their system.”

Even with Mozzochi’s insistence on it being just another game, the Vikings and the Eagles are still playing on Saturday and it is still expected to be a very intriguing game to watch. Each team has some very exciting players to watch on their team and know how to play the game correctly.

“People who come out to watch this game will see great volleyball,” Mozzochi said. “Both teams have great athletes and a fan will get to see two teams that know how to play the game.”

This should prove to be a very exciting game to watch, even if it is just a regular season game. However it will test both squads and allow the winner to ascend to a better position of contention, possibly even first place. Look for the usual Viking contributors to come up big. Jessica Vanzant, Stephanie Lavigne and Jessica Brodie should continue to produce, and the Viks should continue their impressive win streak.

“If we win the regular season title then that’s great, but it is not our focus. We really want to get to the tournament,” Mozzochi said.