Complete Match Notes (PDF)

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Katie Burton era for the Portland State women's soccer team got its first three points in dramatic fashion last Friday, and now heads into its first split, home-away weekend this week against George Fox and Pacific (Calif.).
 
The Vikings open the weekend at home against NCAA Division III George Fox on Thursday, before hitting the road for their first match outside of the Portland area this season at Pacific (Calif.) on Sunday.
 
The Vikings will take some momentum with them into the weekend, after putting up a resilient effort against Nevada last Friday for their first win under Burton. The Vikings were reduced to 10 players in that match when Regan Russell received her second yellow card in the 72nd minute, and had a PK called against them in the 81st minute when a goal for Nevada would likely have been decisive. Redshirt junior Abbie Faingold saved the penalty kick, however, keeping the Vikings in the match.
 
Faingold's save set the stage for senior Katie Forsee, who provided the game winner in double overtime with a brilliant individual effort in the 104th minute. Forsee ran down a long ball up the right side of the field on the play, before dribbling past a defender towards the center of the field and firing a left-footed shot past the Nevada goalkeeper on the near post. The goal marked Forsee's fifth game-winning goal in her Portland State career, tying her for fourth all-time at PSU with Megan Martin (2009-12) and Amanda Dutra (2009-12).
 
The Vikings couldn't muster the same magic against Gonzaga on Sunday, as a pair of early second-half goals for the Bulldogs proved decisive in a 2-1 win over the Vikings. Sophomore Kasey Isobe pulled one goal back for the Vikings with her first-career goal in the 84th minute, and the Vikings had a look at a possible equalizer with a corner kick in the final minute of regulation. Gonzaga cleared the corner easily, however, and the Vikings lost 2-1.
 
The 2-1 defeat cut into the Vikings' momentum from Friday's dramatic win, but was still a marked of improvement over the Vikings' 5-2 loss to Gonzaga last season.
 
Thursday's match against George Fox represents a chance for the Vikings to get a second three points this season. The Bruins out of the NCAA Division III Northwest Conference will be playing their first match of the season Friday, after going 3-14-3 overall last season.
 
Sunday's match represents a greater challenge for the Vikings, as they face their third West Coast Conference team this season in Pacific (Calif.). The Vikings lost 2-1 to Portland and Gonzaga, both WCC teams, and will be playing their first match out of the Portland area when they face the Tigers.
 
The Tigers are coming off a tough year within the WCC last season, however, as they went 1-8-0 in WCC play while finishing last in the highly competitive conference.
 
The Tigers won their first match of the season last weekend with a 1-0 win over host Hawaii at the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Soccer Classic. Outside of that match, the Tigers have lost 3-0 to Fresno State and Seattle, and drew with CSUN, 1-1.
 
The Vikings will have an extra day to prepare for the Tigers, due to the rare Thursday match against the Bruins. And if the Vikings can get the three points against the Bruins on Thursday, then they could go for their first six-point weekend of the Burton era.
 
SCOUTING GEORGE FOX:
• The NCAA Division III George Fox Bruins (0-0-0) will open their 2017 season against the Vikings on Thursday, after going 3-14-3 overall last season and 3-11-2 in conference play while tying for last in the Northwest Conference.
• The Bruins were shut out over their last eight matches last season, and the Bruins only scored more than one goal in one match in 2016. The Bruins scored only seven goals all season, while allowing 31 goals.
• Hannah Harder was the lone Bruin to score multiple goals in 2017, but graduated at the end of last season. Kayla Caldeira, Emma Laurion, Savannah Moisan, Cassie Wilson and Stephanie Wilson scored the other five goals for the Bruins last season, and all but Stephanie Wilson return this season. Wilson ranked second on the team to Harder with three points off one goal and one assist.
• Morgan Bars started 19 of the Bruins' 20 matches in goal last season, but graduated at the end of the year. Kelsey Kammerzell started the other match for the Bruins last season, and returns as one of two goalkeepers listed on the Bruins' roster this season, along with Annalisa Klein.
• The Bruins have a relatively young team with only nine upperclassmen on their 27-player roster, and 10 freshmen.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS GEORGE FOX:
The Vikings and Bruins stand tied 1-1-1 in the all-time series between the two teams. The teams last played each other in 1995, with the Vikings winning 3-0 at home. The other two matches in the series came at George Fox, where the Vikings lost 1-0 in 1993 and drew, 3-3, in 1994.
 
SCOUTING PACIFIC (CALIF.):
• The Pacific (Calif.) Tigers (1-2-1) won their first match of the season last weekend, when they beat host Hawaii, 1-0, at the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Soccer Classic in Waipahu, O'ahu. Outside of that match, the Tigers have lost 3-0 to Fresno State and Seattle, and drew with CSUN, 1-1.
• The Tigers are coming off a 1-15-1 overall record last season, when they went 1-8-0 while finishing last in the West Coast Conference. The Tigers' lone win came against Saint Mary's, which they beat 1-0.
• Samia Adam returns for the Tigers after leading the Tigers with eight points last season on three goals and two assists. Adam tied for the team lead in goals with Sigrid Aas, who also returns for the Tigers this season. Overall, the Tigers return players who accounted for 10 of the team's 12 goals last season, as well as six of the team's seven assists. Hannah Terry and Brynd Thorolfsdottir have scored the Tigers' two goals so far this season, while Adam recorded the Tigers' lone assist.
• Regan Heslop and Henriikka Makela have split the starting goalkeeper job for the Tigers so far this season, after Lena Perry and Melissa Ma split it last season. Heslop hasn't allowed a goal yet this season, while Makela has allowed seven. Heslop started the Tigers' last two matches, but was subbed out at halftime of the team's match against Seattle after going the full 90 minutes against Hawaii.
• Alex Hussar, Samia Adam and Brynd Thorolfsdottir were all named to the All-tournament team following the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Soccer Classic.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS PACIFIC (CALIF.):
The Tigers lead the all-time series between them and the Vikings, 4-2-0. The teams last played each other in 2009, when the Tigers beat the Vikings, 5-0, in Stockton. The teams have each swept the other when playing on their home field, as the Vikings' two wins in the series both came at home, while the Tigers are 4-0-0 all time against the Vikings on their home field. The Vikings last beat the Tigers 10 years ago, with a 1-0 win at home in 2007.
 
LAST TIME OUT:
The Vikings split their home weekend against Nevada and Gonzaga last week, beating Nevada, 1-0, before falling to the Bulldogs, 2-1. The Vikings pulled out a tough match against the Wolf Pack on Friday, as they went down a player in the 72nd minute, when sophomore forward Regan Russell received her second yellow card. What's more, the Vikings had a penalty kick called against them nine minutes later in the 81st minute – a time when a goal for the Wolf Pack likely would have been decisive. Portland State goalkeeper Abbie Faingold saved the penalty, however, keeping the Vikings in the match as it went to overtime. Faingold's save set the stage for senior midfielder Katie Forsee, who won it for the Vikings with a golden goal in the 104th minute. Forsee scored the game-winning goal on a brilliant individual effort, as she ran down a long ball up the right side of the field on the play. Once with the ball, Forsee dribbled past a defender towards the center of the field, before firing a left-footed shot past the Nevada goalkeeper on the near post. The Vikings had to chase the match against the Bulldogs on Sunday, meanwhile, after the Bulldogs went up 2-0 on a pair of goals early in the second half. Sophomore midfielder Kasey Isobe pulled one of the goals back in the 84th minute, as she scored her first-career goal as a Viking off assists from freshmen Rilee Castilla and Tasi Poore. The Vikings had a look at a potential equalizer with a corner in the final minute of regulation, but Gonzaga cleared it immediately to hold onto its 2-1 win.
 
KATIE FORSEE NAMED BIG SKY OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Senior midfielder Katie Forsee scored her first golden goal in the Vikings' 1-0 win over Nevada Friday, and consequently picked up her first Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. Forsee earned the honor after scoring the game-winning goal against the Wolf Pack in the 104th minute. Forsee has now scored five game-winning goals for the Vikings in her career, tying her for fourth all-time with Megan Martin (2009-12) and Amanda Dutra (2009-12).
 
UPCOMING:
The Vikings face a second straight home-away split weekend next week, as they travel to play Oregon State Friday, Sept. 8, before hosting Chicago State Sunday, Sept. 10.
 
SCORING STREAK:
The Vikings have scored in 10 straight matches heading into the weekend, one off the all-time record of 11 straight, set from Sept. 8 to Oct. 24, 1993. The Vikings will tie the record if they can score in the match against George Fox on Thursday. Do that, and the Vikings will be playing for history when they play at Pacific (Calif.) on Sunday. The Vikings finished last season with goals in their final seven matches, going back to a 1-0 win over Montana on Oct. 2, 2016. Eastern Washington stands as the last team to shut out the Vikings in a 0-0 draw on Sept. 30 last season.  
 
THE FORCE-EE IS WITH THE VIKINGS:
Reigning Big Sky Player of the Week Katie Forsee has been in beast mode all season so far, including last Friday when she scored the game-winner in double overtime to beat Nevada, 1-0. Forsee also scored the Vikings' first four goals and assisted on the fifth in the Vikings' 6-1 exhibition win over Fraser Valley on Aug. 15. If the match had counted, Forsee would have finished with the records for fastest hat trick (25 minutes), most goals in a match (4) and most points in a match (9). Forsee led the Vikings with five goals last season, and scored three of the team's six game-winning goals. With her game-winner against Nevada last Friday, Forsee now has five in her Portland State career, tied for the fourth most all time with Megan Martin (2009-12) and Amanda Dutra (2009-12). Forsee will also move into a tie for 10th all time with her next goal for the Vikings, and already ranks in the top 10 all time in shots and shots on goal.
 
IRON WOMAN:
Fifth-year senior Kristin Moyer has played every minute of every match so far this season, and only missed a total of 40 minutes while playing every minute in 14 of 18 matches last season. For her career, Moyer has missed playing time in just nine matches, and did not miss a minute of any match in 2015. Additionally, Moyer has started all 58 matches of her career, giving her a chance to break the school records for career starts and minutes played if she stays healthy this season. Moyer has played 5,215 minutes in her career, just 1,009 off Juli Edwards' current record of 6,224. Moyer will need the Vikings to make the Big Sky tournament in 2017 to break the school record for career starts, however, as she ranks 16 starts behind the current record shared by Nathalie Wollman and Dolly Enneking at 74 – and the Vikings only have 15 matches remaining on their regular-season schedule.
 
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.