STANFORD, Calif. - The Portland State softball team dropped a 1-0, nine-inning battle to UC Riverside in its final game of the Cardinal Classic on Sunday at Stanford Stadium, despite a stellar eight-inning shutout from starting pitcher Grace Kimball.

The Vikings went 1-4 on the weekend and return to Portland with a 3-7 overall record. The Highlanders finished the tournament 2-3, improving to 6-6 on the season.

Eight consecutive scoreless innings are a rarity in softball, yet that's exactly what transpired on Sunday before UCR broke through with the game-winning run in the ninth. The Vikings faced two different pitchers in the contest, but Kimball went the distance for Portland State, surrendering just five hits across a full nine innings of work. The lone run that ultimately won the game for UC Riverside was unearned, reaching base on a Viking error, leaving Kimball without a single earned run to her name in the loss.
 
Portland State recorded eight hits, with half of those coming in their first three at-bats. Leadoff hitter Neveah Smith was outstanding, reaching base four times, going a perfect 4-for-4 to set a career high while accounting for 50% of the Vikings' total hits.

In their opening at-bat, the Vikings got their first two hitters on base but couldn't bring them around. Their next best opportunity to score came in the bottom of the third when both Smith and Lorraine Alo singled, but they were left stranded as UC Riverside escaped the threat. The Highlanders' chances to score in the opening seven innings were few and far between, as Kimball held them to a mere three hits while walking only one batter.

Both teams had opportunities to score in the eighth inning, but neither capitalized. The Highlanders stranded two runners in the top half. In the bottom half, Grace Johnson reached base on an error and later stole second, putting herself in scoring position with one out, but UCR's Maddie Heinlin worked her way out of the jam.

A defensive miscue in the ninth allowed  UCR's leadoff hitter to reach base, eventually advancing to third. The winning run scored with two outs in the inning, crossing home plate on a passed ball before Kimball retired the final batter. The Vikings went three-up, three-down in their final at-bat as the Highlanders secured the victory.

Portland State will return to action next weekend, traveling to Arizona for another five-game weekend. They'll open the road trip on Friday, Feb. 21, with a doubleheader against New Mexico State and Grand Canyon at the GCU Softball Stadium in Phoenix.