Oregon State Beavers Tie Portland 1-1 in Key West Coast Conference Match
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Portland came to Corvallis to take on the Beavers in one of the West Coast Conference's biggest games of the season. Both teams were atop the WCC standings with 2-0-1 records, but were unable to break the tie Wednesday night, with the Beavers and Pilots battling to a 1-1 draw. The tie leaves both teams at 2-0-2 in the conference, and gives the Beavers a 6-3-2 overall record.
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Oregon State got on the scoreboard first, with Fran Cortijo scoring a tricky goal in the 14th minute. Cortijo got control of the ball right of the goal line to the right of the Portland goal. He fired a shot that was arcing back into the Pilots' goal. Portland goalie Miguel-Angel Hernandez got a hand on the shot, but it deflected the ball back into the goal to put the Beavers up 1-0. The goal was Cortijo's third in 11 matches played this season.
FRAN THE MAN!#GoBeavs pic.twitter.com/AX5BLj0v6m
— Oregon State Men's Soccer (@BeaverMSoccer) October 16, 2025
Portland's answering goal came in the 29th minute. After John Nicholson blocked a shot from Alex Waggoner, a collision near the goal prevented the Beaver defenders from clearing the ball. Portland's Anton Hjalmarsson swooped in for an easy score to tie the game.
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That was about all the action in the first half. Oregon State dramatically out shot the Pilots in the first half, 13 to 4, forcing three saves from Hernandez, but the second half would be very different. The game slipped into a defensive stalemate, with Portland putting up four shots to Oregon State's one.
That one came from Joseph Ogwang in the 60th minute, trying to use some speed to try create an opportunity after a Portland turnover, but Hernandez made the save for the Pilots. Portland forced two saves from John Nicholson, but late in the game both sides essentially locked down on defense, with no shots in the final ten minutes, preserving the tie.
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The top of the conference remains locked up. This weekend the Beavers will be back on teh road, traveling to Spokane to take on Gonzaga. The Bulldogs are currently last in the conference with an 0-2-2 record. Kick off is set for 7 PM PT, on Saturday, October 18th.
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Having grown up in Pocatello, home of the Idaho State Bengals, John Severs is a lifelong fan of small schools that don't always deliver a lot of wins. Prior to writing for On SI, John covered the Beavers for SB Nation's Oregon State blog Building the Dam, with a focus on baseball and women's basketball. When he's not watching college sports he spends most of his time reading, playing video games and annoying cats.