KICKOFF
Up until Oct. 1, the team to score first in a Portland State soccer match was the team to win. This streak was broken in a 2-1 loss against Utah Tech, when Elle Frazier's opening goal did not lead to a Vikings win. Their second game, a 1-0 loss against Southern Utah on Oct. 4, was also close.
After over a week off, the Vikings return home to face Weber State (7-5-2, 3-0-1) on Thursday, Oct. 15 (1 p.m. kickoff), and Idaho State (2-7-4, 0-2-2) on Sunday, Oct. 18 (1 p.m. kickoff).
MATCH #12: PORTLAND STATE (2-9-0, 0-2-0) vs. WEBER STATE (7-5-2, 3-0-1)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Thursday, Oct. 15, 1 p.m. PT, Hillsboro, Ore. (Hillsboro Stadium)
SCOUTING WEBER STATE:
- The Weber State Wildcats have won or tied nine of their first fourteen matches this season. Their last two matches were a 5-0 win against Utah Tech (Oct. 8) and a 1-0 win against Southern Utah (Oct. 11).
- In their 5-0 win over Utah Tech, three of the five goals came in the first half of the match – the first only 1:12 into the match. The Wildcats recorded a total of 18 shots, with six on target.
- In their 1-0 victory over Southern Utah, the Wildcats' lone goal did not come until the 71st minute, scored by senior Lily Blum.
- Blum leads the team in goals (7), points (16), shots (32) and shots on goal (16). She leads the Big Sky in goals and is tied for first in goals per game with 0.50.
- Weber State averages 11.2 shots per game, compared to Portland State's 9.0.
- The Wildcats rank third in the Big Sky in scoring offense (an average of 1.57 goals per game) and are tied for second in total goals (22).
- Goalkeeper Lauren Butorac has played at least 70 minutes of every single match this season, averaging 88.05 minutes per game. She currently is ranked second in the Big Sky conference with 1232:41 minutes played.
- Junior Oakley Anderson and sophomore Simone Packer are tied for second in shots (23).
- Eleven players have scored for Weber State so far this season, with four recording multiple goals: Blum (7), Packer (3), Anderson (2) and Sayler Schlosser (2).
SERIES NOTES:
- Portland State has a 12-13-6 record against Weber State.
- The last time the Vikings faced off against the Wildcats, they won 1-0 (Oct. 2, 2025).
- Weber State has a poorer away record (5-8-3) against Portland State than they do at home in Ogden (8-4-2).
MATCH #13: PORTLAND STATE (2-9-0, 0-2-0) vs. IDAHO STATE (2-7-4, 0-2-2)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Sunday, Oct. 18, 1 p.m.. PT, Hillsboro, Ore. (Hillsboro Stadium)
SCOUTING IDAHO STATE:
- The Idaho State Bengals have a similar record to Portland State, with only two wins under their belt this season. They are 0-2-2 in conference play, with their last two games resulting in a tie (0-0 versus Southern Utah on Oct. 8) and a loss (5-0 versus Utah Tech on Oct. 11).
- The Bengals have been outscored 31-10 this season.
- Senior Samantha Fenske leads the team in shots (30), shots on goal (13), and is tied for first in goals (2).
- Seven players have scored for the Bengals this season.
- Idaho State averages 13.7 shots per game compared to Portland State's 9.0.
- Goalkeeper Aliya Garrett is tied for fourth in the Big Sky in shutouts with four. She has played 11 of the Bengals' 13 games this season and currently has a 2.08 goals-against average and a 0.667 save percentage.
- The Bengals' shot accuracy is last in the Big Sky with 0.315. Portland State's shot accuracy is 0.434.
SERIES NOTES:
- The Vikings have a 15-11-2 record against the Bengals. Their last match resulted in a 1-0 loss on Oct. 5, 2025.
FREE KICKS
- LAST TIME OUT: The Vikings lost both of their matches at Utah Tech and Southern Utah with a score differential of one for each match. Elle Frazier scored the lone goal for the Vikings. Goalkeeper Finley Crabtree had 10 total saves.
- RARELY TIED: The Vikings have yet to play a match that was tied entering the 75th minute. The Vikings have rarely been tied in any match this season. Out of 990 total minutes played, the Vikings have only been tied for 286 of those minutes. That's almost 29 percent of the time.
- NON-CONFERENCE RECORDS: Non-conference records have been poor indicators of how the Vikings will finish the season in recent years. They were 1-5-2 at the end of their non-conference schedule last season, only to then go 3-3-2 within Big Sky play. The Vikings were similarly 1-5-3 and 2-5-1 through non-conference play in 2022 and 2024, respectively, only to then make the Big Sky tournament both years. The Vikings' best recent non-conference record came in 2023 when they went 4-5-0.
- SHOT DISTRIBUTION: Eighteen players have accounted for the Vikings' 99 shots this season. Aliayha Saldana leads the Vikings with 25 shots. Grace Sarabia is second with 13, followed by Camilla Contreras Bran who has 10.
STATS ROUNDUP
- SLOW START ON OFFENSE: The Vikings' current goals-per-game average sits at 0.55. That's comparable to their averages the last two years (0.72 and 0.82 goals per game in 2024 and 2025, respectively). Their shots per game currently sits at 9.0, which increased from last year's 8.4.
- SALDANA THE SAVE-YUH: Aliayha Saldana has scored three of the Vikings' six goals so far this season.
- DEFENSE FIRST: The Vikings have allowed multiple goals in six of their eleven matches so far this season. That's counter to how the Vikings have been in recent years. Last season, they allowed only five goals in eight conference matches, and never more than one goal in any match.
- KEEPER STATS: Despite some tough matches, the Vikings rank third in the Big Sky with 5.36 saves per game. Goalkeeper Finley Crabtree ranks third in the conference with 4.64 saves per game individually. She's tied for fifth in the conference for total saves with 51.
- RETURNING GOAL SCORERS: The Vikings returned five of their top six scorers from last season. Aliayha Saldana and Grace Sarabia tied for second on the team with two goals each. Bianca Potesta, another returner, also tied Ocean Rideout for the team lead with two assists last season.
BACKGROUND FACTS
- PRESEASON PREDICTIONS: The Vikings were picked to finish sixth in the Big Sky Conference in the league's preseason coaches poll. The Vikings are coming off a 3-3-2 league record in 2025 when they were also 4-9-4 overall.
- TOURNEY REGULARS: The Vikings qualified for the Big Sky tournament for the fourth straight season in 2025 but fell 1-0 in the quarterfinals to Idaho.
- FAMILIAR FACES: The Vikings returned eight starters off last year's team, including All-Big Sky second-team selection Grace Sarabia and honorable mentions Ocean Rideout and Aliayha Saldana. Additionally, Elle Frazier – an All-Big Sky second-team selection in 2024 – returns to the active roster after missing last season with an injury.
- THAT'S OUR MO: Head coach Maureen Whitney (Sacramento State, 2001) begins her third year as head coach. She has a 10-27-9 career record, 5-8-5 in Big Sky Conference matches. Whitney is in her 10th season overall with the Viking program.
- FROM THE WINDY CITY TO THE ROSE CITY: Senior midfielder Alexis Boyer, junior midfielder Gabby Flores and senior midfielder Renee Davis are all transfers from Chicago State. Flores and Davis were the Cougars' point leaders in 2025. Flores had four goals and two assists while Davis had three goals and three assists. Boyer, meanwhile, ranked fourth on the team with 1,417 minutes played over 19 total appearances and 18 starts.
- LOCAL TIES: Three Vikings – sophomore midfielder McKenna Eggleston, sophomore defender Gianelly Gargurevich, and sophomore forward Claire Masters — are from Tigard, Oregon, where they played together at Tigard High School under head coach Scott Eggleston (McKenna's father).
- SHE FLIES WITH HER OWN WINGS: Portland State has 11 Oregonians on the roster, 10 of which are from the Portland metro area… in the era of the transfer portal, PSU has 11 players on the roster who competed at other four-year schools.
- THE ENEMY OF MY ENEMY IS MY FRIEND: The Vikings have two intra-conference transfers in Kendel Johnson (Montana) and Josie DeLine (Weber State). Johnson played in four matches as a freshman as Montana swept the Big Sky regular-season and tournament titles last season. DeLine, meanwhile, played two seasons for Weber State (2023-24) before transferring to the Vikings ahead of their 2025 season.
- BIG SKY EXPANSION: The Big Sky Conference expands this season with the addition of Utah Tech and Southern Utah (despite the departure of Sacramento State). There are now nine conference matches (rather than eight). PSU will play four at home and five on the road. Overall, the Vikings have 17 scheduled matches, with eight at home and nine on the road.
