KICKOFF
The Portland State women's soccer team enters conference play this week with two away games in Utah. Their first will be at Utah Tech on Thursday, October 1 (6 p.m. PT kickoff), and their second will be against Southern Utah on Sunday, October 4 (10 a.m. PT kickoff).
Coming off a 1-0 triumph over San Diego, the Vikings (2-7-0) are hoping to put more in the win column. In every single game Portland State has played this season, the first team to score has won. Additionally, goalkeeper Finley Crabtree was awarded Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors last week after her shutout performance against the Toreros, which featured a career-high nine saves.
MATCH #10: PORTLAND STATE (2-7-0) at UTAH TECH (4-4-1)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Thursday, Oct. 1, 6 p.m. PT, St. George, Utah
SCOUTING UTAH TECH:
- The Utah Tech Trailblazers have won four and tied one of their first nine games. They have not played in three weeks, after their Sep. 17 match against New Mexico was canceled due to multiple injuries on the team. Their last two games were a 4-2 loss vs. CSUN (Sept. 10) and a 1-0 win vs. Colorado State (Sept. 6).
- In their loss against CSUN, the Matadors scored against the Trailblazers just 1:36 into the match. In their win versus Colorado State, their lone goal didn't come until 86:46.
- The Trailblazers suffered an 8-1 loss versus Utah State on Sep. 3. Two of Utah Tech's goalkeepers, starter Elle Rafajko and redshirt freshman Brenna Kelleher, played that game, both allowing four goals in 45 minutes.
- Utah Tech averages 11.6 shots per game, compared to Portland State's 8.4.
- The Trailblazers rank second in the Big Sky in scoring offense, averaging 1.44 goals per game.
- Goalkeeper Elle Rafajko has played seven games this season and currently has a 2.00 goals-against average and a 0.692 save percentage.
- Redshirt Junior Lataya Brost leads the team in goals (5), assists (3) and shots (22). She leads the Big Sky with 0.56 goals per game and game-winning goals (2).
- Senior Ella Rusick is second in shots (21) and first in shots on goal (11).
- Four players have scored for Utah Tech so far this season: Brost, Rusick, Jocelyn Wright and Abby Olsen.
SERIES NOTES:
- Portland State has a 0-2-1 record against the Trailblazers, with both losses coming on the road at Utah Tech.
MATCH #11: PORTLAND STATE (1-7-0) vs. SOUTHERN UTAH (3-5-1)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Sunday, Oct. 4, 10 a.m. PT, Cedar City, Utah
SCOUTING SOUTHERN UTAH:
- With the exception of one game, Southern Utah's matches have all been close scores with a score differential average of 1.375. This does not include their 18-0 win over Justice College, who have been outscored 28-0 in three games.
- The Thunderbirds will play University of Montana on Oct. 1. Their last two games resulted in a 2-0 loss to Boise State on Sep. 17 and a 2-2 tie with CSUN on Sep. 13.
- They average 10.9 shots per game and 2.67 goals per game. Their goals per game average gives them the Big Sky lead and ranks them 19th nationally. They lead both the Big Sky and NCAA Division I with a shot-on-goal percentage while putting 63.3 percent of their shots on frame.
- Fourteen players have scored for the Thunderbirds this season. Freshman Gracen Blieschke leads the team in goals (4), shots (25), and shots on goal (15).
- Goalkeeper Tatum Trout has played all nine games this season. She has a 1.74 goals-against average and 0.717 save percentage.
- Throughout nine matches, the Thunderbirds have a total of 98 shots, with 62 on target.
SERIES NOTES:
- The Vikings have a 6-3-2 record against the Thunderbirds. Their last match resulted in a 3-2 loss on Sep. 21, 2025.
FREE KICKS
- LAST WEEK: The Vikings earned their second win of the season with a 1-0 victory over San Diego. Goalkeeper Finley Crabtree recorded her first-career shutout while saving a career-high nine shots. Aliayha Saldana scored the game-winning goal in the 44th minute.
- 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 810 total minutes played, the Vikings have only been tied for 193 of those minutes. That's just over 23 percent of the time.
- NO LEAD CHANGES: The first team to score has won all nine of the Vikings' matches this season.
- 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: Seventeen players have accounted for the Vikings' 76 shots this season. Aliayha Saldana leads the Vikings with 21 shots. Grace Sarabia is second with 10, followed by Camilla Contreras Bran and Yammile Picon, who both have 8.
STATS ROUNDUP
- SLOW START ON OFFENSE: The Vikings' current goals-per-game average sits at 0.56. 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 sit at 8.4.
- SALDANA THE SAVE-YUH: Aliayha Saldana has scored three of the Vikings' five goals so far this season.
- DEFENSE FIRST: The Vikings have allowed multiple goals in five of their nine 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 fourth in the Big Sky with 5.00 saves per game. Goalkeeper Finley Crabtree ranks fourth in the conference with 4.56 saves per game individually. Last week, she earned Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors after her first career shutout and a career-high 9 saves.
- RETURNING GOAL SCORERS: The Vikings returned their top six scorers from last season. Ocean Rideout led the Vikings with four goals and 10 points. Aliayha Saldana and Grace Sarabia tied for second on the team with two goals each. Bianca Potesta, another returner, also tied 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 M-O: Head coach Maureen Whitney (Sacramento State, 2001) begins her third year as head coach. She has a 10-25-9 career record, 5-6-5 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.
