DENVER, Colo. --- With less than 45 seconds remaining in the first overtime, Portland's Devlyn Jeter found Maddie Dieker in the middle of the box, and the sophomore forward did the rest burying the game-winner to hand the Pilots a 2-1 win over the Denver Pioneers on Saturday night at CIBER Field. It's the first goal and the first game-winner of the season for Dieker, who also assisted on Portland's (4-6-0) first goal.
 
That first goal came in the 48th minute and it came when Dieker fed a through ball to Cecilia Pedersen with the Pilots trailing 1-0. Pedersen took a couple of touches inside the left side of the 18-yard box before sending a shot past the DU (0-8-1) goalkeeper and inside the right post to level the score 1-1.
 
The game remained tied all the way until the 100th minute when Jeter took a pass from Allison Wetherington left of the 18 before hitting a low, hard ball to Dieker in the center of the box. Dieker settled the ball and finished into the right corner of the net from about 12 yards out, sending the Pilots home victorious.
 
The Pilots were forced to come-from-behind after Denver took the 1-0 lead with a fortunate goal in the 42nd minute when they were awarded a free kick near the left touch line, 35 yards from the Portland frame. On the free kick, Stella Norman sent a ball towards the top of the six where it took a bounce and ended up in the back of the net. It's Norman's first goal of the year and it gave the Pioneers the 1-0 lead at the break.
 
Portland then came out of the locker room energized and immediately attacked the Denver half of the field. After Pedersen's equalizer, the freshman forward nearly gave the Pilots the lead in the 59th minute. She tried to go top shelf with a shot from about 12 yards out, but Denver's Cassidy Rey made a nice one-handed save to keep the score tied for the moment.
 
From there Pilots would continue to control possession for most of the second half and into overtime before Dieker connected on the winner.
 
Portland keeper Rachel Lusby finished with two saves, one of which was stellar diving stop on a Denver shot in the 15th minute. Brook Boothe tried to head one inside the left post, but Lusby came through with the save to keep the game scoreless.
 
The Pilots next return home to open up play in the West Coast Conference. First the San Diego Toreros visit for a 7 p.m. game at Merlo Field on Thursday night. Saturday brings a match-up with BYU, which also scheduled for 7 p.m.