Women’s soccer upsets top-ranked Boise State in final match

The Utah State University women’s soccer team defeated Boise State on Friday in its final match of the year; It was potentially the biggest upset in Mountain West soccer this season.

Going into the match, the Broncos were tied for first in the conference, Utah State was ranked second to last. None of that mattered when freshman midfielder Megan Astle got the ball in the 30th minute. Astle shot a rocket from just outside the 18-yard box and knocked it into the upper right corner of the net to give the Aggies a 1-0 lead over the Broncos.

“Oh my goodness. That was a heck of a hit,” USU women’s soccer head coach Heather Cairns said.

Featured player: Freshman midfielder Megan Astle. Photo by Iain Laurence

It ended up being the goal that would win Utah State the game.

Boise State proved to be faster and more physical, the Broncos out-shot Utah State 19-5. But the Aggies were able to overcome this with disciplined passes and a tight defense.

“I think that the whole idea was just move the ball quick enough so that the physicality didn’t come into it,” Cairns said. “We got a couple people around the ball, we were able to possess out of things and really make them chase quite a bit.”

The time Boise State spent chasing the ball burned off the clock and helped Utah State women’s soccer secure the victory. But the Broncos still managed to maintain quite a bit of possession throughout the match, which they used to barrage the goal. Were it not for the performance of Utah State’s defenders and goalkeeper, the score could have been significantly different.

Senior defender Mealii Enos cleared the ball out from dangerous situations several times throughout the match, making her a key player for Utah State in the back.

“We just had to make sure that we were tight on some of their key players,” Enos said, “and make sure that they couldn’t get running at us with the ball.” 

Freshman goalkeeper Diera Walton put up quite a fight in the goal, blocking each of the Broncos 11 shots on frame. 

“I just mentally had to stay in the game,” Walton said. “And I have to be positive with myself I have to keep my self controlled and motivated.”

Walton’s 11 saves marked a new career high. She also picked up her sixth clean sheet of the season.

“She has been great for us all season,” Cairns said. “Gosh to have her three more years. suiting up in the Aggie jersey, that’s something that’s gonna be something special.”

The team had a tense moment in the 88th minute when Boise State was awarded a free kick, but the shot ended up going high over the crossbar. Two minutes later, the Aggies secured their victory.

 According to Cairns, the team did it for the seniors.

“They did everything they could today to make this a great send off for seniors that are really irreplaceable for us,” she said.

Cairns said the reason the senior class is so irreplaceable is because of what the players have done for the program.

“From the second we left that field again Boise last year, they set their mind to changing the culture of this program and putting it in a more positive direction,” Cairns said. “They’ve completely changed and put us back on the right track.”

For Enos, the victory helped make her last outing as an Aggie even more memorable.

“It is the absolute best feeling in the world,” Enos said. “It’s kind of a surreal feeling knowing that you’re not gonna have another one of these, but I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else… I’m so proud of everyone and the fight that we had in this game.”

Twitter: @SydChap