The Vandals home stretch came to a close with a loss to Portland State 2-1 Sunday in the Kibbie Dome. Try as they might, the Vandals (5-8, BSC 1-4) couldn’t closeout the Big Sky Conference match against the Vikings (7-7, BSC 4-2) with a win.
Idaho head coach Derek Pittman said Portland State played well and the Vandals allowed them to win.
“Hats off to Portland State, they came into a difficult game in a difficult environment and they found a way to win,” Pittman said. “Unfortunately for us, we found a way to give it to them. I thought we played really well at times, especially in the first half. We were much more aggressive trying to create opportunities.”
The Vandals came out ready to fight for the win. A battle between sophomore forward Myah Merino ended in a delay of game and Merino walking off the field with assistance. She did not return for the duration of play.
The Portland State Vikings put the first point on the board in the 37th minute of play.
Several Vandals made runs at the goal, but none were able to convert for points.
Halftime looked to come at the perfect time for the Vandals as the team looked to be slowly losing steam.
The second half Vandal team looked energized and ready to fight for the win at home. It took some time but Idaho found a way to level the score late in the 62nd minute. Freshman midfielder Hadley Sbrega got the ball to junior forward Bridget Daley who shot the ball across the field to junior midfielder Megan Goo. Goo headed the ball into the net for the Vandals lone score of the game.
This seemed to only fire the Vikings up more. Portland State responded with a goal less than a minute later from Katie Forsee to take the lead 2-1.
The Vandals continued to battle, looking physical against a top Big Sky Conference opponent but were unable to find the goal and get the win. Idaho has yet to win a conference game in the Kibbie Dome.
The Vandals finished with a total of 15 shots, seven of which were on goal. This is compared to the opponents that had 11 shots and five on goal. Junior goalie Makayla Presgrave had three saves on goal.
“We are going to learn from it, get back to work this week and continue competing and giving everything we have as we continue to improve this upcoming week.”
Idaho hits the road again to face Weber State 6 p.m. Oct. 20 in Ogden, Utah.
Meredith Spelbring can be reached at [email protected]