Women’s team hits the road

This week, the Vikings will hit the road for match-ups with conference foes Montana and Montana State.

The road trip will give PSU a chance to improve on the dismal 2-8 away-game record it has earned this season. The team has addressed the fact that road wins have been few and far between, and are working on the solution.

“Our biggest thing is to work on our mental toughness,” Viking head coach George Wolfe said. “We’ve been overly affected by home crowds. When you walk into a gym, you’re playing everyone in there, including the fans,”

Tonight, the Vikings will have to tune out the crowd when they face Montana in Missoula. The Lady Griz should be a confident adversary, having just completed a successful road trip in which they defeated both Northern Arizona and Sacramento State. The Lady Griz are currently 12-6 on the season, 3-2 in BSC play.

The Vikings were 1-1 against Montana in regular season play last year. However, players on both teams no doubt remember their last meeting all too well, a crushing 86-52 Grizzly victory over the Vikings in the opening round of the BSC Championships.

Top BSC Sophomore Hollie Tyler leads the Lady Griz from the center position and has been averaging 16.7 points a game. She will most likely be facing Viking leader Sarah Hedgepeth tonight, as well as injured center Carrie Spencer, who has recently been performing very well during her limited amount of playing time.

Junior Montana point guard Brooklynn Lorenzen leads the BSC in assists (5.39) and will also be a key player to contain.

The Vikings will face one of the highest ranked teams in the BSC when they play Montana State on Saturday. The Bobcats are 10-0 at home this season and are currently undefeated in the conference. Their 14-4, 5-0 start is their best since the 1992-93 season.

The Vikings failed to defeat the Bobcats last year but only trail in the all-time series between the two teams 16-12.

Montana State’s domination of the BSC this season is due in no small part to the team’s depth. Four Bobcat starters are averaging double figures and not one of their players is averaging more than 30 minutes per game.

On a team full of solid players, Bobcat forward Isabel Stubbs, who routinely leads in both point and rebound percentages, will be one to especially watch out for.

The Vikings are now tied with Montana for third place in the conference, with records of 8-10 on the season, 3-2 in BSC play.