Women’s basketball rallies for first league road win

The Vikings hit the road and hit it hard this weekend facing two opponents back to back Friday and Saturday. Their first stop was in California where they faced the Sacramento State Hornets, who handed Portland State its third straight win.

The first half saw nothing but complete Viking domination and ended with Portland State leading 30-9. The Vikings held the Hornets to just under 19 percent from the field and nine points in the first half.

After halftime, the Hornets came out ready to play and began edging the scores closer and closer. However, the Viking lead was too great to be overturned and they took the win with a score of 67-45.

The Vikings capitalized on 26 Sacramento State turnovers and several Hornet fouls, which translated into 14 points for Portland State from the free-throw line.

Three Vikings, Nikki Petticrew, Heidi Stuart and Sarah Hedgepeth, were all in double digits with 19, 11 and 11 points respectively. Niki Sadowski and Hedgepeth also came up big on the boards for Portland State, pulling down eight rebounds.

The Hornets were led by Samantha Miller (who had 14 points) along with Kristine Knowlton (who had 14 rebounds).

“I thought we came out real focused,” head coach George Wolfe said. “We didn’t allow them to penetrate into the key.

“It means a lot. We have never put two games (wins) together all season. It gives us confidence.”

However, Portland State needed a little more than confidence as it rose early on Saturday morning to head to Flagstaff, Ariz. where the team met the 11-9 and 4-3 (Big Sky Conference) Northern Arizona Lumberjacks.

The Vikings simply couldn’t get the game to swing their way as they watched the Lumberjacks take a commanding lead in the first half, 20-5. However, Portland State responded and brought the game closer, ending the first half with a score of 36-23, NAU.

The second half wasn’t much different and all the Vikings could do was play catch up. Northern Arizona broke the Vikings’ three-game win streak with a final score of 72-46.

The Vikings were outmatched in almost every single aspect of the game. They only shot at 26.1 percent from the field, while the Lumberjacks dropped baskets at 40.3 percent. Portland State also gave the ball up 27 times compared to just 10 turnovers for Northern Arizona.

Jill Feller was the only Viking to reach the double digit mark in points with 13. Helping out under the hoop were Sadowski and Staci Kleier who each had seven rebounds on the night.

Comparatively, the Lumberjacks had three players in double digits. They were led by Jen Snitker with 18 points, and Constance Richard who pulled down eight rebounds and 12 points.

The loss brings Portland State’s record to 9-12 and 3-5 (BSC). However, the win on Friday night should give the Vikings a bit of a boost coming into this next weekend.

Friday night, the Vikings will take on the University of Montana Grizzlies and won’t have much time to rest, as they will face the Montana State Bobcats on Saturday. The first time Portland State met these two teams, they were on the road. Both games will be played at the Peter Stott Center this time around. Game time for both matchups is set for 7:05 p.m.