Viking’s Unforgettable Postseason Run Comes To An End In Seattle

Next game:

Seattle University

05/22/2021 | 5:30 p.m. PT

ESPN3

SEATTLE, Wash. – The Portland State softball team fell 6-5 to Seattle in a playoff game at the NCAA Regionals on Saturday.

PSU finished the season 15-26 overall and 4-2 in the postseason.

The Vikings took the first lead of the day at the head of the first. A Redhawk mistake and a drawn walk by Olivia Dean earned two runs after loading the bases to start the inning.

Seattle took the lead from the Vikings, scoring one run at the end of the first and finally two after scoring another hit in the third.

Viking freshman Paetynn Lopez drove into Marissa Bruno to give PSU a 3-2 lead, but the Redhawks were quick to react. They responded with a fifth inning with five hits and four runs and took the biggest lead of the day 6-3.

With one runner on the base and three behind their team, the Vikings challenged Hannah Bell to set a spark for the offense. The senior did just that and buckled her first run home over the left field wall to meet Tayler Gunesch and shorten the lead in Seattle to one.

After Katie Schroder kept Seattle goalless in sixth place, the Vikings couldn’t find the late inning magic in the final frame. The Redhawk defense prevailed three to three down in the seventh inning to take the 6-5 win.

Olivia Gray took the loss in the circle for the Vikings when she finished her freshman campaign with an 8-8 record. Schroeder, a senior Redshirt, retired from college and threw the last two innings for PSU.

Marissa Bruno led the offensive with two hits and ended her historic season with a team high of 0.396.

The Vikings will return to Portland with their heads held high after a Cinderella postseason run. PSU made history as the first five-seed to win the Big Sky tournament and appeared in the program’s first NCAA Regional since 2013.