No. 2 Seed at Stake as Vikings Head to Montana for Regular Season Finale

PORTLAND, Ore. – Seeking a second-place finish and the program's highest postseason seed since 2014, the Portland State women's soccer team will head to Montana this weekend for its regular season finale. The match is slated for Sunday, Oct. 22 at 11 a.m. PT/12 p.m. MT.

PORTLAND STATE (7-6-2, 4-1-2 BSC) at MONTANA (12-2-3, 6-0-1 BSC)
Sunday, Oct. 22 | 11 AM PT/12 PM MT | Missoula, Mont. (South Campus Stadium)
All-Time Series: Montana leads 16-13-3
Last Meeting: L, 3-0 (11/2/22 at the Big Sky Tournament)
Montana 2022 Record: 7-7-6, 3-4-1 BSC (6^th place)
GAME LINKS: Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+

Montana clinched their ninth regular season Big Sky title on Thursday with a 2-0 victory over Sacramento State. The Griz are unbeaten in conference action (6-0-1). Their only Big Sky tie came in their conference opener, 1-1 against Eastern Washington. Montana had a handful of impressive wins in non-conference action, including a 1-0 win over Oklahoma. The Griz have given up the least amount of goals in the conference, allowing three to Big Sky opponents. Junior forward Skyleigh Thompson leads the team with six goals. Redshirt freshman Ashlyn Dvorak has been stellar in goal, recording 66 saves and a GAA of 0.50, the best in the Big Sky. A Viking win on Sunday would be the program's first road win over Montana since 2013.

LAST TIME OUT – AT IDAHO STATE/WEBER STATE - The Vikings suffered their first conference loss at Idaho State last Friday, falling 3-2 to the Bengals. Idaho State held a 3-0 lead in the second half before the Vikings scored two late goals to cut the deficit. After a 66th-minute goal by Sienna Higinbotham, Kalo Iongi netted her first career goal in the 84th minute before the Vikings' comeback effort fell short. The Vikings recorded their fourth shutout of the season on Sunday at Weber State, tying the Wildcats 0-0 at the Wildcat Soccer Field. WSU held the Vikings to a season-low five shots in the contest.

DÉJÀ VU – For the second consecutive season, the Vikings are heading into the regular season finale with a 4-1-2 conference record. The Vikings finished the 2022 conference schedule 4-2-2, securing a three-seed in the tournament.

NO. 2 SEED AT STAKE - Montana clinched the regular season title this Thursday with a 2-0 victory over Sacramento State. The Vikings remain in second place heading into the final game of the regular season. A win over the Griz will clinch the No. 2 seed in the Big Sky Tournament. A loss or a tie will present an opportunity for Idaho or Northern Arizona to snag the No. 2 spot with two victories.

2023 BIG SKY CONFERENCE STANDINGS

BIG SKY OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK – The Vikings have had two Big Sky Offensive Players of the Week this season. Most recently, fifth-year midfielder Sienna Higinbotham earned the honor (Oct. 20), following a three-goal weekend that included two game-winners against Idaho and Eastern Washington. Earlier this season (Sept. 19), senior forward Raniyah Burton earned the weekly honor after a seven-point weekend (3 goals, 1 assist) against UC Riverside and CSUN.

THE GREEN STREAK - Fifth-year defender Hailey Green holds one of the longest complete-game streaks in the NCAA, playing 35 consecutive matches without leaving the field. Green's streak spans across three seasons, dating back to Oct. 17, 2021. She enters Sunday's match having played 3,170 consecutive minutes on the Vikings' back.

SECOND-HALF MAGIC - Second-half goals have been crucial for Portland State this season, scoring 16 of its 23 goals in the final 45 minutes, nine of which have been scored with less than 10 minutes remaining in the contest. Of the Vikings' seven wins this season, five have been clinched with game-winning goals in the final 30 minutes. In back-to-back games earlier this season, Sienna Higinbotham (at CSUN) and Ocean Rideout (vs. UNC) both scored game-winning goals in the 89th minute.

CORNER KICK THREAT – The Vikings have made the most of their corner kick opportunities as of late. Out of 23 corner kicks over the last five games, five have turned into goals. The Vikings have scored 10 goals over their last five outings, meaning 50% of them were set up by corner kicks. Junior midfielder Abi Hoffman delivered all five of those kicks, while Sienna Higinbotham has put three of the five in the net.

DYNAMIC DUO – Midfielders Sienna Higinbotham and Abi Hoffman have been putting on a show during conference competition. The pair has combined for six goals and four assists during Big Sky play, totaling 16 points over five games. The two of them are tied for a conference-best eight points against Big Sky opponents. Montana's Skyleigh Thompson is the only other player to have eight points heading into the final weekend. Hoffman ranks first in the conference with four assists in Big Sky play. Higinbotham leads the conference with four goals in Big Sky contests.

BETWEEN THE POSTS - Sophomore Natalie Cunningham and graduate transfer Eden Millan have both seen action in goal for the Vikings this season. Making her first career start in the season opener against New Mexico State on Aug. 17, Cunningham was impressive in the net, recording a career-best 10 saves in the contest. Both have seen action during Big Sky Play. Millan (2-2) earned her first career win over Northern Colorado in the Big Sky opener on Sept. 22, followed by another victory at Sacramento State on Oct. 1. Cunningham (5-3) secured the first two conference wins of her career two weekends ago playing the full 90 minutes against Idaho and EWU. Both have two recorded two shutouts each.

KATIE BURTON'S 30TH WIN - The Vikings' win over CSUN earlier this season marked Portland State Head Coach Katie Burton's 30th career win. Burton joined Laura Scott as just the second coach in program history to reach the milestone. Burton and the Vikings have added to that win total since the win on Sept. 17, moving her record to 34-67-11. 21 of those wins have come against Big Sky opponents.

BY THE NUMBERS

The Vikings have 23 goals this year, already surpassing their total from 2022 (18)
The Vikings scored a season-high 5 goals against EWU while also tallying 17 shots on goal (4th most in program history), senior Raniyah Burton led the effort with a career-high seven shots in the win
12 Vikings have scored at least one point this season
The Vikings attempted 31 shots in their win against Pacific, the second-most in a single match in program history
The Vikings recorded a double-digit shot count in nine consecutive matches to open the season
Out-scoring conference opponents 12-6, the Vikings rank first in the conference with 12 goals
Sienna Higinbotham (x2), Raniyah Burton and Abi Hoffman have all scored braces this season

KEYS TO VICTORY

The Vikings are…

7-0-0 when scoring the first goal of the match, 0-6-0 when surrendering the first goal
3-0-0 when leading at half, 4-1-2 when tied at half
3-1-0 when scoring a goal before the half
6-1-0 when scoring 2 or more goals
5-0-0 when outshooting opponents
7-2-0 when earning more than or the same amount of corner kicks as opponents

2022 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

Made their 14th appearance in the Big Sky Tournament
Secured the program's highest Big Sky Tournament seed since 2014 (3-seed)
Notched the first five-win season since 2018
Posted three consecutive shutouts to open Big Sky competition for the first time in program history
Opened Big Sky play 4-0-1 which marked their best start to conference action since 2013
Claimed their first wins over Northern Colorado, Montana, and Weber State since 2016

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Players Mentioned

#8 Raniyah Burton: F; 5' 2"; Senior; Raniyah Burton

#0 Natalie Cunningham: GK; 5' 11"; Sophomore; Natalie Cunningham

#10 Hailey Green: D; 5' 8"; Graduate Student; Hailey Green

#2 Sienna Higinbotham: MF; 5' 5"; Graduate Student; Sienna Higinbotham

#29 Abi Hoffman: MF; 5' 8"; Junior; Abi Hoffman

#3 Kalo Iongi: D; 5' 7"; Sophomore; Kalo Iongi

#6 Ocean Rideout: F; 5' 7"; Sophomore; Ocean Rideout

#1 Eden Millan: GK; 5' 4"; Graduate Student; Eden Millan

Players Mentioned

#8 Raniyah Burton
: 5' 2"; Senior; Raniyah Burton
: F

#0 Natalie Cunningham
: 5' 11"; Sophomore; Natalie Cunningham
: GK

#10 Hailey Green
: 5' 8"; Graduate Student; Hailey Green
: D

#2 Sienna Higinbotham
: 5' 5"; Graduate Student; Sienna Higinbotham
: MF

#29 Abi Hoffman
: 5' 8"; Junior; Abi Hoffman
: MF

#3 Kalo Iongi
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; Kalo Iongi
: D

#6 Ocean Rideout
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; Ocean Rideout
: F

#1 Eden Millan
: 5' 4"; Graduate Student; Eden Millan
: GK