The Hornets were battling with the Vikings and Eastern Washington for the final two spots in the conference tournament, but with Sacramento State’s loss and Eastern Washington’s 67-57 victory over Northern Arizona, the Hornets were knocked out of tournament contention, placing seventh in the Big Sky standings. The top six teams advance to the postseason tournament.

Sacramento State falls to 4-9 in Big Sky play, while both the Vikings and Eagles improve to 6-7, clinching the final two tournament berths. For the Vikings (12-14), who outscored Sacramento State 42-30 in the second half, it is their first appearance in the postseason since 2003. Eastern Washington (12-14) will make its sixth consecutive postseason appearance.

Sacramento State advanced to the tournament a year ago after not reaching the playoffs since 1997.

The Hornets (9-16) will play their final game of the season on Saturday at Eastern Washington, with tip-off scheduled for 2:05 p.m.

Senior Cindy Alldrin scored a team-high 22 points to go along with eight rebounds, and three assists to lead the Hornets, but Alldrin was alone in double figures.

Sacramento State shot just 38.3 percent from the floor, and despite shooting 74.4 percent from the free-throw line entering the game, shot just 56.3 percent (9-of-16) against Portland State.

The Vikings were led by freshman Kelsey Kahle’s 21 points and eight rebounds, while Heather Arns chipped in 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

At the half, the teams were tied at 30-30, with Alldrin scoring 17 first-half points for the Hornets. But in the second half, 11 turnovers and 12-of-33 shooting (36.4 percent) plagued Sacramento State.

The Vikings opened the second half on an 8-0 run, while the Hornets committed three turnovers on the offensive end in the first three minutes.

Sacramento State was able to chip away at the Vikings lead with three-pointers from junior guard Kim Sheehy and Alldrin, eventually taking a 48-46 lead with 10:33 remaining after junior point guard Stephanie Cherry knocked down a free-throw to finish a three-point play.

The Hornets'' only lead of the second half was short-lived, as Portland State went on an 18-6 run and took its first double-digit lead of the game, 64-54, before junior guard Ashley Storms drained a three-pointer with 2:47 remaining.

It was a four-minute scoring drought that allowed Portland State to mount its unbreakable lead. Senior forward Ashley Cadotte scored with 6:36 remaining, as the Hornets trailed just 56-54, but the Hornets failed to score again until Storms’ three-pointer with less than three minutes remaining. The Vikings got offensive production from Jenni Ritter, Sharon Wahinekapu and Arns in the late stages.

Freshman Atty Boyer was productive off the bench for the Hornets, scoring six points in seven minutes on the floor and shooting 2-of-2 from the floor and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe. The 2005 El Camino High School graduate also grabbed three rebounds.

Portland State shot 52.6 percent from the floor, including a devastating 17-of-32 performance (53.1 percent) in the second half. It was the highest shooting percentage for a Hornet opponent this season. The Vikings also committed just 13 turnovers.

With Idaho State''s 71-57 win over Montana State, the Bengals clinchd the Big Sky regular season title and will host the Big Sky Conference Tournament March 9-11 in Pocatello.