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LONG BEACH, Calif. — Facing its first ranked opponent of the 2015 season, the Portland State women's soccer team ran up against a talented Long Beach State side on its home field, losing 6-0 to the 49ers at George Allen Field Sunday.
 
"We play these games to measure where we are in comparison to the best teams in the country," PSU head coach Laura Schott said after the match. "We played a good game Sunday and played a bit tired and our rough moments got exposed.
 
"I'm excited to see the film and learn from the game. Each game is very valuable right now."
 
Two of the Vikings' four losses this season have now come to teams currently ranked in the top 25 of the NSCAA Coaches Poll. Besides the loss Sunday, the Vikings also lost to Arizona State, which has moved up to No. 24 in the poll since the Vikings played them at the beginning of the season. Additionally, the Vikings' four losses this season have come against teams with a combined record of 15-3-2.
 
The Vikings were also facing the back end of a split weekend Sunday, as the team beat Hawai'i 1-0 at home Friday, then had to travel down to California for the match at Long Beach State.
 
The 49ers (4-1-1) put the Vikings (1-4-0) in a hole early Sunday, too, as Long Beach State's Vania Robles put her team up 1-0 two minutes and 42 seconds into the match, when she took one touch and fired a shot past PSU goalkeeper Angela Haluska to the lower right of the goal.
 
The Vikings settled into the match after that, but the 49ers broke through the Viking defense again in the 29th minute, when Mimi Rangel scored off a pair of passes from Rocio Rodriguez and Jessica Vincent.
 
The Vikings remained within two goals until halftime, but the 49ers fired back with four goals in the second half, including a second-half hat trick for Long Beach State's Melanie Fox. Fox scored her first goal in the 52nd minute off a corner kick, then got on the end of a free kick in the 60th minute for her second goal. Alyssa Alvarez scored the 49ers' third goal of the second half in the 63rd minute, before Fox came back with the final goal of the match 36 seconds before the end of regulation.
 
Haluska, despite the goals allowed, still finished the match with eight saves, raising her total for the season to 41. Haluska now averages 8.2 saves per match, giving her an average that would rank as the second-best single-season average in school history if the season ended today.
 
The Vikings will now look to bounce back in a week, as they host Air Force at 1 p.m. (PT) next Sunday at Hillsboro Stadium.
 
Match Notes: The Vikings fall to 0-2-0 against Long Beach State following Sunday's loss…Sunday's match marked the fourth and final match the Vikings will play against Big West Conference opponents this season, and the Vikings went 1-3-0 in those four matches…The Vikings fell to 8-13-2 all-time against Big West teams following Sunday's loss.