MOSCOW, Idaho – In a hard-fought, back-and-forth battle, Idaho (7-4-1, 3-0-0) defeated Portland State (3-8-0, 1-2-0), 1-0, on Friday afternoon at Guy Wicks Field. Olivia Baggerly scored the lone goal of the game off a free kick in the first half.
“Big Sky soccer sometimes isn't pretty,” said head coach Derek Pittman. “I'm just extremely proud of our players for working and grinding out another result. Portland State is a team that is playing desperate, trying to find ways to score goals and win games. I thought our team did an excellent job shutting them down and really limiting their shots throughout the entire 90 minutes.”
The entire defensive unit was in-sync on the day, allowing just two shots in the first half and just three shots on goal all game. Amanda Poertner was solid yet again, earning her fifth shutout of the season. Poertner's five shutouts are the third most in a single season in program history, just one away from tying the all-time mark.
“I'm proud of our back line, as well as Alyssa Lloyd as the holding midfielder,” Pittman said. “Our back five, back six with the goalkeeper, has been stellar all season. They find ways to make sure that the other team doesn't get good looks at the goal. Today was just another example of that.”
The Vandals got the lone goal in the 30th minute, with Baggerly scoring her third of the season. Baggerly lined up a free kick just outside the 18-yard box and blasted in a shot that took deflections off the Viking wall and then off the left post before finding the back of the net.
“Set pieces are a major focus of ours as a program,” said Pittman. “We have some players that can do some really special things on set pieces, whether it be battling for balls in the air or simply shooting from distance. We practice those a lot, we spend a lot of time on it. We know that when we're not playing as well, not finishing our chances, we have the set pieces to fall back on.”
Idaho had a great opportunity to extend its lead in the 39th minute. After the ball skipped out to midfield following a Vandal corner, Josilyn Daggs sent in a lofted cross that found Lloyd streaking behind the Portland State defense. Lloyd was in, 1-vs.-1 with the keeper, but the keeper made a solid save and left no rebound for Reagan Quigley, who was ready to pounce on a loose ball.
The Vandals thought they had doubled the lead in the 75th minute on a long-range shot from Amanda Pease, but the Viking goalkeeper came up big again with a tremendous diving effort to force the ball out for a corner.
Next up, the Vandals host Sacramento State. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Sunday at Guy Wicks Field.
Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Idaho soccer by following the team on Twitter and Instagram, @VandalsSoccer, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals Women's Soccer.
For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com. Fans can also find Idaho on Twitter and Instagram, @Idaho_Vandals, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals.
