SACRAMENTO — Sacramento State and visiting UC Irvine battled through a scoreless draw over the first 45 minutes, but a pair of second-half goals by the Anteaters were enough to lift the visiting side to a 2-0 victory on Saturday afternoon in the Hornets' home finale.

The loss moved Sacramento State to 3-10-4 overall and 0-4-4 in Big West Conference play on the year, ending the Hornets' hopes of earning a spot in the league's postseason event. UC Irvine improved to 7-6-3 overall and 4-3-1 in conference play with the victory.

Following a scoreless first 45 minutes between the two teams, the Anteaters were the first on the board just 97 seconds into the second half after Sacramento State goalkeeper was shown a red card after denying a scoring opportunity in the box, sending UCI to the penalty spot and putting the Hornets a man down the rest of the way.

Agaton Pourshahidi converted for his second goal of the year after the keeper change for the 1-0 lead. He later added his third of the year in the 65th minute after a loose ball bounced away from the defense, punching it home to an open net for the final 2-0 tally.

Mac Learned finished with two saves over the first 47 minutes before Edgar Guerra came in and finished with five stops.

UC Irvine finished with a 15-6 advantage in shots, putting nine of its attempts on frame, while taking five of the match's seven corner kicks. Austin Wehner and Michael Gonzalez finished with a team-high two shots apiece.

Sacramento State has only one match remaining in its 2023 season, heading across the Causeway to take on UC Davis on Saturday (Oct. 28). The match will be played under the lights at 7 p.m. at UC Davis Health Stadium instead of Aggie Soccer Field.