Aggies beat Omaha, undefeated through five matches

    A pair of goals by junior forward Mari Miyashiro pushed the Utah State soccer team over Omaha, 3-1, Sunday at UNO Soccer Field.
    With the win, USU improves to 3-0-1 this season, while UNO falls to 0-3-0. The Aggies depart the Cornhusker State  with a 1-0-1 record after tying UNO’s cross town rival, Creighton, on Aug. 24.
    “After a lackluster first half, we really picked it up, and we really put our nose to the grindstone to get the win,” said USU head coach Heather Cairns. “In the first half, we didn’t have anyone doing their jobs. Everyone was expecting someone else do it or trying to do too much. In the second half we settled down. Everyone played their role, and the pieces came together for us to get the win.”
    Just over a minute into the match, the Mavericks tested starting goalkeeper senior Ashlyn Mulford when Danielle Archuleta’s shot was saved. UNO came out strong with three of the first four shots of the match.
    Despite the quick start by Omaha, it was the Aggies who got on the board first in the 14th minute of the match when Miyashiro earned her first goal of the season. She knocked in a 25-yard shot that just went over UNO goalkeeper Meaghan Clark.
    Omaha evened the score in the 21st minute with a penalty kick by Monica Bosijevac. Prior to the penalty kick, a yellow card was called on Mulford for a foul in the box.
    Utah State had a few more offensive chances in the first 45 minutes, but the half ended with the score knotted at 1-1.
    The Aggies took the first three shots of the second half with two sailing just wide right by junior midfielder Kendra Pemberton. USU continued to stay aggressive in the second half with Pemberton, junior defender Jessica Hoskin and junior midfielder Jennifer Flynn all taking shots in a two-minute span.
    The aggressive Aggie attack paid off as Utah State took the lead 2-1 in the 75th minute with another goal off the foot of Miyashiro. The junior took advantage of a Maverick turnover in the box to tap in the goal which was her second of the match and the season. Miyashiro and Flynn are now the only two Aggies with more than one goal this season.
    USU continued to apply the pressure and four minutes later upped its lead to 3-1. In the 79th minute, freshman forward Danielle Gaztimbide scored her first collegiate goal, knocking in a goal off the pass from sophomore defender Taryn Rose after a corner kick from Hoskin. The assist was the first of the season for Rose and only the second of the season for the Aggies
    After only six shots in the first half, USU ended the match with 21 compared to only seven by UNO. Once again the Aggies split time in goal with Mulford taking the first 45 minutes and freshman Jeannie Woller taking the second half and earning the win.
    After the short road trip, Utah State returns home to take on Northern Colorado on Friday, Aug. 31 at 4 p.m. Last season the Aggies beat the Bears, 2-1, in Greeley, Colo. On Sunday, Sept. 2, USU will take the quick trip to Orem to face Utah Valley at 1 p.m.