The Idaho Vandals entered the Big Sky Conference tournament in Flagstaff, Arizona, with a championship in sight. That goal got closer when the Vandals used a second-half penalty kick to defeat Portland State 1-0, solidifying a spot in the Big Sky championship.
The #2 seed Idaho Vandals came in 10-4-2 on a three-game win streak. The Vikings came in 8-7-2 with a 4-1 dominating win over Idaho State in the quarterfinal earlier in the week. The Vikings also got the best of the Vandals 2-1 in the regular season.
The Vandals, however, had a surprising starter in this game. With junior center back Cassidy Elicker not playing, sophomore defender Kate Sprink took her spot and stepped up in her absence.
The game kicked off, and the Vandals’ rust was apparent with misplayed passes and unforced turnovers. The sloppiness led to some early Portland State opportunities. The Vandals eventually settled down and started to spray the ball around.
The Vandals and Vikings got some shots off, but neither of them challenged the keepers. After 45 minutes, the score was deadlocked at 0. The Vikings outshot the Vandals 11-7 in the first half. However, the Vandals had three shots on target while the Vikings only got two on frame.
The second half came, and the intensity from the Vandals increased. Ten minutes into the second half, they had a chance to take the lead. Senior outside back Alyssa Peters, from the corner flag, put in a ball, but it was saved by sophomore goalkeeper Natalie Cunningham.
The rebound went up in the air, and sophomore forward Karli Yoshida-Williams chased the ball. She was pushed in the back by junior midfielder Lucy Quinn in the penalty kick box, and after a shout from the crowd and the Vandal bench, the referee pointed to the penalty spot. The Vandals now had a golden opportunity to take the lead.
Senior midfielder Hannah Alfaro stepped up to the spot, put her hands on her hips, and calmly-slotted the ball into the top right corner. It blew past the outstretched arms of Cunningham as the Vandals took a 1-0 lead.
The Vikings fought back and, two minutes later, were inches from equalizing. Junior midfielder Abbi Hoffman sent in a corner kick, and through a scramble, junior defender Audrey Williams got her leg on the ball. The ball bounced off the post, and the Vandals cleared the danger.
After the scare by the Vikings, the Vandals used their experience and elite defense to almost get them over the finish line. After the Vandals cleared a last-second prayer and the clock hit zeros, the Idaho bench erupted and flooded the field, knowing they were headed back to the Big Sky championship.
After the game, Alfaro spoke to the media about the win, saying, “it was awesome. We worked for this, and we knew coming into this game that we were not going home yet. To put the ball in the back of the net for this team, it took everyone it was awesome to get it done.”.
Alfaro and the Vandals are looking forward to the title game. “We work hard, we push each other every day, we have a mindset. Last year we were finalists we know what it feels like to lose in the finals, and we are not letting that happen again,” she said.
The Vandals dominated the second half, outshooting the Vikings 7-3, forcing two saves out of Cunningham. The Vikings’ growing frustration mounted with them committing six second-half fouls. With the shutout, sophomore Kira Witte has tallied three shutouts in the Big Sky tournament in three appearances.
In the later game, the #4 seed Northern Arizona Lumberjacks knocked off the #1 seed Montana Grizzlies 1-0, setting up a championship rematch from a year ago. The Vandals will appear in their third Big Sky championship game, looking to bring their first championship home to Moscow. The Vandals will get that chance on Nov. 5 at noon.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected] or on X @JaydenBarfuss10