Hillsboro, OR – Rodney Hammond Jr. highlighted Sacramento State's Big Sky Conference-leading rushing attack on Saturday at Hillsboro Stadium. His 191 rushing yards and two touchdowns were key to the Hornets' 52-24 victory over Portland State.
 
In all, the Hornets ran for 295 yards and five touchdowns out of 483 yards of total offense. PSU had 319 yards of offense and was hindered by three turnovers.
 
"I'm frustrated by a lot of things but the bottom line is the running game that (the Hornets) have put together is really tough to stop," said Vikings Coach Bruce Barnum. "We had our moments but then they would pop a big play.
 
"We have to eliminate our turnovers to win a game like that. You can't give up opportunities in a game where you aren't going to touch it as many times because of the way they play."
 
The Hornets improved to 6-4 on the season, 4-2 in the Big Sky Conference, as they try to reach the FCS post-season. PSU is now 1-9 on the season, 1-4 in the Big Sky.
 
Sacramento State made no bones about what it wanted to do, running the ball on 11 of 12 plays on its first scoring drive. The Hornets dominated time of possession and took advantage of a PSU interception to build a 14-0 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Hornets ran 22 plays to only five for the Vikings.
 
Delon Thompson responded for the Vikings on a two-yard scoring run. That play followed a 46-yard kick return by Cru Newman and a 46-yard pass reception by Terence Loville.
 
The Hornets followed quickly with another score on a 65-touchdown catch by Ernest Campbell and once again led by two scores. PSU's defense buckled down and allowed only 20 yards and forced two punts by Sacramento State for the remainder of the half.
 
PSU's Tyrese Smith came in at quarterback and led the Vikings on a scoring drive before halftime. He rushed for 29 yards in the series, then completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to tight end Charlie White. That made it 21-14 at intermission.
 
In the third quarter, PSU pinned the Hornets back at their own five-yard line on an outstanding punt by Tony Johnson. But Hammond ripped off an 87-yard run before being stopped by safety Isaiah Green. Two plays later, JaQuail Smith went in from six yards out and SAC led by two touchdowns once again.
 
Later in the quarter, Sacramento State gambled on a fourth-and-six play from the Portland State 41-yard line and Hammond ripped off another big run up the middle, scoring a touchdown, for a 35-14 Hornet lead.
 
The closest the Vikings could come after that was 38-24 midway through the fourth quarter. The Hornets tacked on two late touchdowns for the final score.
 
The Vikings got 106 receiving yards on five catches from wide receiver Terence Loville.
 
"He had some outstanding catches today. He ran by the defense, and Delon ran hard as well," said Barnum.
 
Thompson added 80 yards rushing, 10 yards receiving and had one touchdown.
 
On defense, linebacker Jerome Roberts made 11 tackles, including one for a loss. The Vikings had three sacks, with two coming from defensive end Slade Shufelt and one from defensive end Spencer Elliott. Jaxton Helmstetler added nine tackles.
 

GAME NOTES

• Terence Loville had his second 100-yard receiving game of the season.
• Kicker Mathias Uribe made his 11^th consecutive field goal over the last seven games.
• Sacramento State is leaving the Big Sky Conference after this season to move to the FBS level. PSU leads the all-time series with the Hornets, 24-15, and the Big Sky series, 14-10.
• The Vikings are home again next week, facing second-ranked Montana at Providence Park. It will be PSU's first game in the downtown stadium since 2018.