PORTLAND, Ore. - Sacramento State took advantage of three Portland State turnovers and the Hornets rattled off 24 straight points at one point to knock off the Vikings, 31-14, in Big Sky Conference action on Saturday.

The Hornets (1-1 Big Sky) picked up their first win in four games this season and also won at PGE Park for the first time since 1985. It was their second straight win over the Vikings after a 41-31 win in Sacramento last year.

Portland State dropped its third game in a row to fall to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in the Big Sky.

The Hornets forced Portland State to go three-and-out on its first possession of the game and then turned right around and scored on a 13-play, 52-yard drive.

Sacramento State benefited from good field position after Vikings punter Thomas Duyndam was only able to get off a 25-yarder. The Hornets took the ball over at their own 48-yard line with 13:53 on the clock and proceeded to convert on all three of their third-downs, including on their touchdown play.

On 3rd and 11 from the Vikings 15, Jason Smith hit Brett Willis in the endzone and the Hornets led 7-0 after the PAT.

Portland State was able to cut the lead to 7-6 on a pair of Zach Brown field goals. The redshirt freshman connected on a 36-yarder with 4:35 left in the first quarter, and then hit from 38 yards out just 56 seconds into the second quarter.

Sacramento State took advantage of a Drew Hubel interception late in the quarter and scored 57 seconds before halftime when Smith found Dylan Lane for a nine-yard touchdown pass. Smith's second TD pass gave the Hornets a 14-6 lead at the break.

The Vikings weren't able to find the end zone until the outcome of the game was already determined. Hubel took the team down the field in an eight-play, 73-yard drive that ended when he connected with a diving Nevin Lewis for a 22-yard score.

"I'm surprised... we had less emotion, less passion," said Viking coach Jerry Glanville. "It just looked like an empty tank. We tried to get it going at halftime. The spirit makes the master. If you don't have the spirit, you can't play this game. That's my fault. Very, very seldom we haven't played with passion... it didn't look like us. We couldn't make a play."

The loss dampened what was a career day for Portland State wide receiver Lavonte Kirven. The senior set career-highs with 13 receptions and 188 yards.

Hubel was 31 for 50 for 370 yards, but threw two interceptions. Smith passed for 256 yards and three touchdowns for the Hornets, connecting on 17 of his 29 passes.

Sacramento State rushed for 142 yards and held the Vikings to negative two yards rushing. The Viking running game missed senior fullback Bobby McClintock, we struggled with an ankle injury all week and was only able to go one play before coming out. Meanwhile, Hornets sophomore running back Terrance Dailey carried the ball 34 times for 111 yards and a touchdown.

Portland State hits the road for its next game when it plays at Northern Colorado next Saturday. Kickoff is set for for 12:35 p.m. PT.

GAME NOTES:

Lewis, a freshman, had the first two catches of his career in the game, including the 22-yard touchdown when he stretched out and caught the ball just inches above the ground...

Cody Worthen led the PSU defense with nine tackles, including five solo stops...

Nate Jones had seven tackles, all unassisted, for Sac State...

Aaron Woods had 239 all-purpose yards for PSU (125 kickoff returns, 83 receiving, 31 punt returns)...

The Vikings lead the all-time series with Sac State, 21-8, including 11-3 in Big Sky games...

The Hornets won for just the third time ever in Portland in 13 tries, and it was their first win at PGE Park in seven Big Sky games.