Complete Match Notes (PDF)

PORTLAND, Ore. — One win down, the Portland State women's soccer team takes a step up in competition at the Big Sky tournament with a semifinal match against top-seeded and tournament-host Eastern Washington Friday at 1:05 p.m. (PT).
 
The Vikings beat Northern Arizona 1-0 in the Big Sky quarterfinals Wednesday to advance to the semifinals, but will need to upset the No. 1 Eagles if they hope to advance any further.
 
The Eagles will be a formidable opponent for the Vikings, after they won the Big Sky regular-season title by seven points over Montana with an 8-1-1 conference record. The Eagles beat the Vikings 3-0 in their regular-season meeting in Cheney, Wash, on Oct. 13, a match in which they outshot the Vikings 25-2.
 
Top seeds have a history of falling in the Big Sky tournament, however, and the Vikings will be looking to draw on that history when they play Friday. Top seeds have won the Big Sky tournament just once in the past nine seasons, with Idaho State being the lone exception in 2012.
 
The Eagles came into the tournament after losing their regular-season finale at Idaho, 2-1. That loss snapped an 11-match unbeaten streak, as well as an eight-match win streak that included the Eagles' win over the Vikings.
 
The Eagles were the Big Sky's top offensive team during the regular season, as they scored 13 more goals than any other team in the conference. The Eagles' 5.75 points per game average was more than 1.5 points per game better than second-place Idaho and Sacramento State at 4.11, while their goals per game average of 2.10 was more than 0.5 better than second-place Idaho at 1.53.
 
Senior forward Chloe Williams was named the Big Sky Offensive MVP for the third straight season, after she broke the Big Sky conference record for career goals. Williams led the Eagles with 10 goals during the regulars season, while junior midfielder Jenny Chavez ranked second on the team with seven goals. Those two led a balanced attack for the Eagles in which seven different players scored at least three goals.
 
The Eagles were also one of the best defensive teams in Big Sky play, as they shut out six of their 10 Big Sky opponents and tied for the conference lead with only six goals allowed in conference matches.
 
The Vikings recorded their sixth shutout of the season in their 1-0 win over NAU Wednesday. The Vikings held NAU to only eight shots in the match, and did not give up a shot on goal to the Lumberjacks in the second half.
 
The Vikings will need a similar performance against the Eagles Friday, when they'll look to become the ninth team in the past 10 seasons to knock out the No. 1 seed in the Big Sky tournament.
 
MATCH INFO:
Friday, Nov. 3 – vs. No. 1 Eastern Washington – 1:05 p.m. (PT) – Cheney, Wash. (EWU Soccer Field)
 
TICKETS:
A $5 ticket will get adults into both matches on Friday, while adults will be charged $8 for the Big Sky championship match on Nov. 5. College students will be admitted for free with a college ID, while kids 12 and under will be admitted for free throughout the tournament. Ticket gates will open one hour before game time and will be accepting cash only.
 
LIVE STATS:
Live stats will be provided for every match throughout the Big Sky tournament. Fans can find the link to live stats through the Portland State women's soccer schedule on GoViks.com.
 
TELEVISION:
The semifinals and championship of the Big Sky tournament will be televised by Eleven Sports. Fans can find the broadcast on DirecTV (Channel 623), AT&T Uverse (Channel 1665), Verizon FiOS (Channel 597) and Google Fiber (Channel 251). Chris King will serve as the play-by-play announcer for the television broadcasts, while former Portland State head coach Laura Schott will serve as the color commentator.
 
LIVE VIDEO:
Live video for the whole tournament will be streamed through WatchBigSky and Pluto TV. Fans can find the link to the live video streams through the Portland State women's soccer schedule on GoViks.com.
 
SCOUTING EASTERN WASHINGTON:
The Eastern Washington Eagles (14-5-1) opened Big Sky play with a 0-0 draw at home against Sacramento State, but then ran off eight straight wins in conference play that included a 3-0 home win over the Vikings on Oct. 13. The Eagles lost their regular-season finale on the road at Idaho, 2-1, snapping an 11-match unbeaten streak that set a program record.
 
The Eagles scored 13 more goals during the regular season than any other Big Sky team, and led the conference in points (115), goals (42), goals per game (2.10), assists (31) and assists per game (1.55). The Eagles' 5.75 points per game average was more than 1.5 points per game better than second-place Idaho and Sacramento State at 4.11, while their goals per game average of 2.10 was more than 0.5 better than second-place Idaho at 1.53.
 
Senior forward Chloe Williams, who was named Big Sky Offensive MVP for the third straight season after setting the conference career record for goals scored, led an Eagles offense that had seven players score at least three goals this season. Williams led the Eagles with 10 goals and 22 points (10g, 2a), while junior midfielder Jenny Chavez ranked second on the team with seven goals. Alexis Stephenson and Saige Lyons rank tied for third on the team with four goals each, while Aimie Inthoulay, Allison Raniere and Devan Talley rank behind them with three goals each.
 
The Eagles were also one of the best defensive teams in Big Sky play, as they only allowed six goals in their 10 Big Sky matches this season. The Eagles tied for the conference lead in goals allowed in Big Sky play, and also tied for the lead with six shutouts in conference matches.
 
Senior goalkeeper Emily Busselman started in goal for all 10 of the Eagles' Big Sky matches, and led the Eagles with a 0.81 goals-against average in 15 starts.
 
The Eagles won the Big Sky tournament for the first time last season on their home field when top-seeded Idaho wasn't able to host due to poor field conditions. The Eagles are hosting as regular-season champions for the first time this season. The Vikings have never played the Eagles in the Big Sky tournament.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS EASTERN WASHINGTON:
The Vikings lead the all-time series between them and the Eagles, 14-6-2. The Vikings haven't beaten the Eagles since 2014, however, and the Eagles beat the Vikings 3-0 in Cheney, Wash., on Oct. 13 during the regular season.
 
VIKINGS AT BIG SKY TOURNAMENT:
The Vikings' win over Northern Arizona in the quarterfinals Wednesday was just their third win all time in the Big Sky tournament, and their first in four tries against NAU in the tournament. The Vikings are still just 3-8-3 all time in the tournament, however, and have never won the tournament despite hosting it three times, and winning at least a share of five Big Sky regular-season titles. The Vikings have a tortured history with penalty kicks in the tournament, as they've been eliminated on penalty kicks three times before. The Vikings lost on PKs in the Big Sky semifinals in 2009 and 2011, and lost the Big Sky championship match on PKs in 2013.
 
LAST TIME OUT:
The Vikings beat Northern Arizona 1-0 in the Big Sky quarterfinals Wednesday off a 70th-minute goal from sophomore Regan Russell. The Vikings scored the lone goal of the match off a corner kick from Mya Lopez, who sent the ball to senior Katie Forsee at the top of the box. Forsee flicked a header onto Rilee Castilla, who took one touch to control the ball before firing a cross to Russell on the back post. Russell hammered Castilla's cross into the net from point-blank range, scoring the game-winning goal for the Vikings only a minute after she had subbed into the match for the first time in the 69th minute. The Viking defense took over after Russell's goal and did not allow NAU a single shot on goal after the Vikings went up 1-0. Redshirt junior Abbie Faingold made three saves in the match, while Faingold and the Viking defense finished with their sixth shutout of the season.
 
UPCOMING:
If the Vikings beat the Eagles in the semifinals, they'll advance to the championship match of the Big Sky tournament at 12:05 p.m. Sunday.
 
THE FORCE-E IS WITH THE VIKINGS:
Katie Forsee tied the single-season school record for shots on goal in the Vikings' match against Montana last Friday – the seventh record Forsee has either set or tied this season. Forsee broke the career record for shots on goal (85) earlier this season, as well as the season and career records for shots (78 and 170, respectively) and game-winning goals (six and 10, respectively). Forsee also tied the single-match record for goals scored with a hat trick in the Vikings' 8-0 win over Chicago State on Sept. 10. Forsee's six game-winning goals this season lead the Big Sky and stand just one behind the single-season Big Sky Conference record of seven that Haley Wingender of Northern Arizona set in 2014. Forsee also ranks in the top five of the Big Sky in points (21), goals (9), points per game (1.11) and goals per game (0.47). Forsee's nine goals this season stand as the best single-season total by a Viking since Dolly Enneking set the school record with 12 in 2009. If the season ended today, Forsee would finish with two more records, as she would break the Portland State single-season records for shots per game (4.11) and shots on goal per game (2.05). Forsee also ranks in the top 10 all time at Portland State in points (3rd with 40), goals (3rd with 16) and minutes played (6th with 5,953).
 
KRISTIN MOYER, THE IRON WOMAN:
Redshirt senior Kristin Moyer broke the Portland State career record for minutes played in the Vikings' Big Sky quarterfinal match against Northern Arizona. Moyer moved ahead of Juli Edwards with 6,303 minutes played in her career, after Edwards had previously held the record with 6,224 minutes played from 2004-07. Moyer overcame an injury that kept her out of four matches earlier this season to break the record. Moyer had missed time in only nine matches before her injury, and has only missed 12 minutes of play since her return. Moyer hasn't missed a start for a match she was healthy for in her career, and ranks tied for sixth all time in career starts with 70.
 
ESPN DARLINGS:
Junior midfielder Morgan Matthews' 71st-minute equalizer against Sacramento State on Oct. 8 was named the No. 6 highlight on ESPN's Top 10 plays that night. It marked the second time the Vikings had made SportsCenter's Top 10 plays in the past two seasons, following Breanne Chilton-Eddy's golden goal against Weber State on Oct. 23, 2016. Matthews' goal was also named to espnW's Top 10 plays of the Week at No. 10.
 
KATIE BURTON ERA:
The Katie Burton era opened for the Vikings with the team's match against cross-town rival and national powerhouse University of Portland on Aug. 18. Burton came to the Vikings after serving as the associate head coach at her alma mater Sacramento State, where she led a program turnaround in just over two years there. The Hornets hadn't made the Big Sky tournament in four seasons before Burton's arrival, but made the Big Sky tournament in their first year under Burton in 2015. Burton led the Hornets to a second-place finish last season, when they clinched the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye in the Big Sky tournament with a 2-1 win over the Vikings in both teams' regular-season finale.
 
NEWCOMERS:
The Vikings added 13 newcomers to their roster in 2017, including seven from Oregon. Additionally, the Vikings added two players from Washington, two players from Arizona, and a player each from California and Idaho. Of the 13 newcomers, 11 came into the season as freshman, while Tiegan Horton and Molly Joyce enter as junior and sophomore transfers, respectively. The 11 freshman for the Vikings are: Rilee Castilla, Megan Cornett, Paige Donathan, Liz Hansen, Mya Lopez, Tasi Poore, Teá Poore, Kendall Pope, Diamond Quinn, Ellie Vasey, Teri Walters.
 
2016 SEASON RECAP:
The Portland State Vikings came within a game of returning to the Big Sky tournament last season. The Vikings entered their regular-season finale against Sacramento State with the chance to clinch a spot in the tournament with a win, only to fall to the Hornets, 2-1. The season-ending loss put a damper on what had been a strong, and at times dramatic, push by the Vikings to make the tournament. The Vikings entered their final road weekend four points out of the sixth and final playoff spot, and had lost eight straight Big Sky road matches at that point. The Vikings pulled out a pair of 1-0 wins at Northern Colorado and North Dakota, however, giving them their first six-point conference road weekend since 2013. The true magic followed the following weekend when then-senior Breanne Chilton-Eddy scored a golden goal on her own Senior Day against Weber State on a magical shot that ESPN ran on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays that night. The Vikings also came back to beat the Wildcats after giving up the first goal – the first time they had done that since 2013.