Greeley, Colo. - The Portland State women's soccer team opened up conference action in remarkable fashion on Friday evening, defeating defending Big Sky Champion Northern Colorado 1-0 at Jackson Stadium.

The Vikings improved to 2-5-3 (1-0 BSC), while the Bears fell to 4-5-2 (0-1 BSC). The victory marks the first Division I road win for Portland State since 2019 and the first victory over UNC since 2016. 

The Vikings controlled the tempo during the opening 45 minutes, out-shooting the Bears 7-4 and claiming a 6-0 advantage in corner kicks. Neither team could break through in the early minutes of the second half. The Viking's changed that in the 78th minute when Abi Hoffman passed the ball off to Sienna Higinbotham near mid-field. Higinbotham found Olivia Stone mid-stride near the top right corner of the box as the senior dumped it over a leaping Bears goalkeeper for her first career goal. UNC pressured the Viking's defense in the final 11 minutes, but to no avail as Portland State clinched the victory. 

Viking goalkeeper Sidney O'billovich tallied three saves on her way to a shutout in her first complete game of the season. The Vikings earned a season-high ten corner kicks in the match while out-shooting the Bears 14-13, putting eight shots on goal. Elle Frazier led PSU with four shots, while eight other Vikings contributed to the total. 

The Vikings will look to ride their momentum into Sunday when they return to Hillsboro Stadium to take on Montana (1:05 p.m.)