UNC Soccer Opens Big Sky Competition with Portland State and Sacramento State

GREELEY, Colo.- Northern Colorado Soccer will open their Big Sky Conference slate this week when they host Portland State on Friday and face Sacramento State on the road on Sunday.

The reigning Big Sky regular season champions now enter conference play after being picked to win the Big Sky in the Coaches' Poll earlier this season. They will also host the Big Sky Tournament in November.

Scouting the Vikings
Northern Colorado will open Big Sky competition with the 1-5-3 Portland State Vikings at home. Portland State will head into the match following a 2-0 loss against CSUN to close out their non-conference slate. Their first win came earlier in the season against Western Oregon, while teams they have tied against include South Dakota, New Mexico, and North Dakota.

Head Coach Katie Burton's squad will come to Greeley with some notable players on the roster. These include Abi Hoffman, Elle Frazier, and Enya Hernandez. Hoffman leads her team with four goals, two of which helped propel PSU past Western Oregon and secure their lone win of the season. Frazier follows behind with two goals in 2022, netting the equalizer against New Mexico to split the points for her team. Goalie Enya Hernandez has recorded a team-leading 23 saves so far this season.

History Against Portland State
UNC has a 7-8-1 all-time record against Portland State. This includes a 4-4-1 mark at Jackson Stadium and a 3-4-1 mark in Portland. The Bears enter the match with a two-game winning streak against the Vikings. In their most recent matchup, UNC got the best of PSU with a 4-1 victory in Greeley. The Bears now look to add a third game to their winning streak against the Vikings.

Scouting the Hornets
Head Coach Randy Dedini's Sacramento State Hornets will host Northern Colorado for their first conference road game of the season. They currently have a record of 0-6-3. Most recently, they earned a 2-2 tie on the road against CSU Bakersfield. Other notable opponents the Hornets have faced this season include #21 Stanford and #22 Washington. The team will also face off against Montana to open their Big Sky play before hosting the Bears on Sunday.

Some Hornets to watch so far this season are Mia Shalit, Aubrey Goodwill, and Abigail Lopez. Shalit, the team's goalkeeper, has tabbed a whopping 50 saves so far this season, with 11 of them coming in their game against Washington. Goodwill and Lopez tie for a team high three goals this season. Goodwill scored both goals against CSU Bakersfield to earn a draw for her team, while Lopez earned the equalizing goal against UCSB and two goals against Pacific.

History Against Sacramento State
The Bears have an all-time mark of 7-8-3 against Sacramento State. When competing against the Hornets, they have a home record of 2-4-1, an away record of 3-3-2, and are 2-1 on neutral turf. Last season, the UNC outmatched the Hornets at home to earn a 2-0 shutout victory. Northern Colorado now hopes to keep their winning streak alive as they compete on their opponent's turf come Sunday.

Friday's conference opener against Portland State is set for 7 p.m. at Jackson Stadium, while Sunday's road match against Sacramento State is slated for 2 p.m. MT. Both games will be available to stream on ESPN+.

To stay up to date on all things UNC Soccer, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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