The Sacramento State women’s basketball team secured a 71-67 victory over Portland State this afternoon in the Nest. The Hornets now trail the Vikings by two games in the loss column for the last seed in the Big Sky tournament.

Hornets guard Alle Moreno hit two free throws with a minute left, giving the Hornets a 66-65 lead.

The last minute of play saw Portland State attempt multiple shots, but could only come away with two more points.

The Hornets were able to extend the lead, scoring five more points from plays by Emily Christensen, Fantasia Hilliard and Se’nyce Parrish. Parrish made the final two points with a layup with one second remaining.

Hornet forward Kylie Kuhns sank eight of her 13 shots for 17 points, and led the team in rebounds with nine.

“We needed to get a win to keep our playoff chances alive, and we did that and I’m really excited,” Kuhns said.

Head coach Jamie Craighead said the team did not perform to its full potential, noting the 23 turnovers the Hornets had and the lack of 3-pointers, with only two made out of 18 attempts. The Hornets were also out-rebounded by the Vikings.

“It was an ugly win. We didn’t play particularly well, but we found a way to win the game and hopefully we can put together a better 40 minutes when we are at their place next week,” Craighead said.

Hilliard scored 13 points for the Hornets with four rebounds and shot six-of-nine from the field. She also had three assists and two steals. 

Portland State exchanged leads with the Hornets throughout the game. The score was tied nine times and Portland State had 10 fast-break scores against the Hornets’ 12.

Sac State had 14 assists with 10 steals, three of the steals coming from Kuhns, who also had three blocks against the Vikings.

Craighead said the win was the result of the entire team coming together.

“This was a team win. It wasn’t anybody who won the game for us; everyone stepped up in individual moments,” she said.

Joe de Ocampo can be reached at [email protected].