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Portland, OR - Carroll College was game, but Portland State was able to take advantage of a handful of big plays and pull off a season-opening 38-20 win at JELD-WEN Field.

The Vikings narrowly outgained the Fighting Saints, 360-343. But a couple of long touchdown receptions, a pick-six and a long touchdown run aided the Viking win.

Carroll proved its worth on offense, controlling time of possession, running effectively and hitting with the short passing game. In fact, the Saints took an early 6-0 lead after a 12-play, 65-yard drive.

The Vikings answered quickly with DJ Adams scoring on a 46-yard run on the next possession. On Carroll's next offensive play, linebacker Jaycob Shoemaker picked off a Dakota Stonehouse pass and returned it 32 yards for a score. That put the Vikings ahead 14-6 and they never trailed again.

Adams scored a two-yard TD and the Saints hit on two short field goals, leaving PSU ahead 21-12 at halftime.

Carroll had 223 yards of offense in the first half to 158 for the Vikings, and nearly a two-to-one time of possession advantage.

The third period was all defense, with Carroll managing just 23 yards and PSU gaining 32. The key play was a pressured punt that resulted in only one yard for Carroll. That set the Vikings up for a 34-yard field goal from Nick Fernandez and a 24-12 lead.

The defense shut down the Saints the rest of the way. PSU tacked on two touchdown receptions in the fourth period. The first was a 36-yard catch by Justin Lilley. It was originally intended for Alex Toureen but was deflected by a Carroll defender in the end zone. Lilley caught the live ball before it hit the turf and the Vikings extended their lead to 31-12.

On PSU's next possession, Shaquille Richard took a screen pass from Kieran McDonagh and let his legs do the work, racing 80 yards for the score and a 38-12 lead.

Carroll added a late touchdown for the final score.

In addition to his interception, Shoemaker had seven tackles and two quarterback hurries. Linebacker Ian Sluss had a game-high 11 tackles, including 2.5 for losses. Joel Sisler also had an interception for the Vikings. In all, the Vikings had 11 tackles for loss.

Adams led the Vikings with 82 yards on 14 carries and scored two touchdowns. McDonagh completed 8-16 passes for 192 yards and two scores.

"It was good to see guys make plays, Shoemaker with the big pick, Marquis Jackson, DJ Adams, Shaq Richard. We need a lot more of that throughout the season," said Viking Coach Nigel Burton.

McDonagh, a true freshman, started his first collegiate game. "He did a nice job," said Burton. "He did those things you can't teach. When a play broke down and it wasn't there, he was able to use his feet, buy more time, hit guys and do some nice things."

GAME NOTES: Carroll is a member of NAIA Frontier Conference. The Fighting Saints have won six NAIA National Championships in the last 10. In 2011, they finished as national runner-up… Portland State travels to the University of North Dakota (1-0) on Sept. 8. Kickoff is 4 p.m. PT. The game can be seen on Comcast SportsNet in the Portland area. The radio broadcast is on Freedom 970 AM and www.freedom970.com with the pre-game show beginning at 3 p.m.