Aggies draw with Fresno State in Defensive Shootout

In their fifth Pac-12 game of the year, Utah State soccer would settle for a 0-0 draw against Fresno State University. The Aggies dominated statistically, taking 22 shots on the night while only allowing the Bulldogs to take two. Nonetheless, the Aggies were unable to get a shot into the back of the net as the clock hit zero.

Despite the Aggies not jumping ahead in the scoring department in the first half, they were still able to control the pace right from the outset of the game. The Aggies were able to apply pressure immediately, taking two shots on goal in the first five minutes of the game. 

The pressure continued from there, as they would rack up 14 shots in the first half of the game alone, three more shots than they took in the entirety of last Sunday’s matchup against Boise State.

Defensively, they were dominant as well, taming nearly any pressure that the Bulldogs developed. Fresno State was only able to muster one shot near the end of the half, which Ivy Nystrom was able to save.

Out of the half, the story appeared to have changed. The Bulldogs came out much more aggressive than in the first half, giving the Aggies some early pressure. The Aggie defense was able to prevent Fresno State from scoring. Despite Fresno State setting the early pace, the Aggies only allowed one shot in the entire second half.

The tide shifted again after a stop for an injury helped the Aggies reset. Following the break, the Aggies once again maintained possession and were able to keep the ball on Fresno State’s half for the majority of the rest of the night.

“I reassured them that you know, as long as there’s time on the clock, we we have we have opportunities to create and finish chances,” Martins said. “I just wanted them to stay composed and be in control because I felt like as the game got later, we became a little bit frantic, and that doesn’t help us because we don’t train being frantic.” 

Despite the improved second-half offense, the Aggies still couldn’t seem to find the goal. The Aggies were not able to create as many shots in the second half, but were still able to take eight. In addition, fouls from both teams continually stalled out offensive possessions.

With the clock ticking down and still no score on the board for either team, the Aggies starting applying a lot of pressure on the Bulldogs. Six of the eight Aggie shots in the second half came within the last ten minutes of play. 

For a moment, it seemed as though the Aggies had taken the lead after a goal in the 85th minute. The goal would be called back after review for offsides by the Aggies. 

“Obviously it’s disappointing. I haven’t gone back to review it yet. I’m gonna gonna trust the official got it right,” Martins said. “It’s obviously it’s a little bit heartbreaking because I thought we did enough to create at least one goal for us.” 

In the 86th minute, the Aggies once again had an opportunity to take the lead as Kunie Hirai was awarded a free kick, which missed high. The Aggies would take three more shots but none would find the goal.

“I give credit and respect to Fresno State. They defended very well. They had a good game plan that made it hard for us. We did create chances that we didn’t put away, and we did have moments where we turned the ball over, more unforced errors than than most games,” Martins said. “That part was maybe a reflection on our preparation. Maybe we missed something, but certainly I thought we did enough to give ourselves a shot, and unfortunately today we weren’t clinical enough.”

With the draw, the Aggies are now 4-0-1 in conference play. They still remain atop the conference standings with only three more games until the Pac-12 tournament.