As the Vikings suffered through their eighth shutout of the year, they surrendered three goals to the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks to lose 3-0. NAU came into the game with a record of 4-10-2, 0-4-1. This was a comparable record to that of Portland State, who finished the season 1-15-2 overall, 1-5-0 conference. This game also denoted the finish to the careers of seniors Stacey Storie, Lori Mansoor, and injured Victoria and Angela Upchurch.
The Vikings lost their final game of the year on Friday to the NAU Lumberjacks who ended in fifth place for the season. They passed Portland State, which could have potentially captured that spot with a win. After last week’s win, the Vikings were hoping they could get on the board early like they did in the first half against Eastern Washington.
Instead, the Lumberjacks were able to get on the board first with a goal from Holly Jones, who set the career record for goals in the Big Sky with two for the game. Jones’s first goal came in the first half. She scored her next goal about 11 minutes into the second half. The third goal came late in the second half to seal the victory from Sarah Pachan off of a penalty kick.
“It’s disappointing to end the year with a loss, but we have to put it behind us and focus on the future,” head coach Tara Bilanski stated in a recent press release.
The most aggressive players offensively for Portland State were Rebecca Blum, Melanie Langley, and Julie Forrest who each recorded two shots for the game. The 21-11 margin for shots on goal told the story for the shutout, as the Lumberjacks also won the close margin on corner kicks, 5-3. PSU goalkeeper Gretchen Pietras was able to record five saves in the loss, while NAU goalkeeper Erin Beckman marked seven in the shutout.
Bilanski finishes her first season in the process of rebuilding the PSU program. Last season the Vikings ended in last place with no victories. This season they were able to capture one victory along with two tie games. Aside from five and six goal losses early in the preseason, the Vikings were never defeated by more than three goals this year.