Flynn tallies lone goal in Aggies’ win over Wyoming
The Utah State women’s soccer team beat Wyoming Sunday in Logan. The win was the Aggies’ second straight win in conference, improving their overall record to 6-4-2 and their Mountain West Conference record to 2-1.
The game was scoreless until the 52nd minute when Jennifer Flynn found her way through multiple defenders for a look from 14 yards out, and she took advantage. The goal was her third of the season, and she is getting closer to 100 percent after her injury.
“I would say I’m pretty close,” Flynn said about getting healthy. “I’m still working on getting in shape and playing a full 90-minute game, but I’m pretty close.”
The Aggies, who were held to only one shot in the first half, bounced back for a nine-shot effort in the second half. USU’s Flynn-led attack was able to impose their will on the Cowgirls’ defensewith a plethora of opportunities with crosses into the box. The Aggies also had six corner kicks in the second half.
“We were really happy with the ability to get to the end line with the crosses that we created and the corners,” said head coach Heather Cairns. “That’s something we’ve been working on this last week and that we will continue to work on, because we think that will be an effective tool for us.”
For the first time in four games, the Aggies held their opponent scoreless. The shutout was the fifth for USU, who rode on sophomore goalkeeper Jeannie Woller’s four saves and Brooke Larsen-Leavitt’s tough defense to keep Wyoming off the board.
“It felt good to keep the shutout, and it felt good to get those balls cleared out in the second half and just play consistent,” Larsen Leavitt said.
Wyoming nearly tied it in the 75th minute with a hard shot from 15 yards out, but the shot was batted down by a diving Woller. The save preserved the win for the Aggies.
Flynn produced five shots on goal, including a shot rocketed to the top corner that was saved by Wyoming’s Alex Boehim, who laid out for the ball and managed to send it over the top of the goal.
“I think the goal got the whole team fired up,” Flynn said. “That made it easier for us to play in the attack instead of defending the whole time.”
The two straight wins have been huge for the Aggies to regain the confidence they had to start the season. USU didn’t record a loss until the sixth game of the season, which was followed by a six game winless streak.
“We went through a slump, but I think our team did a great job of staying optimistic,” Cairns said. “We’ve done a lot of work in a lot of areas to get our groove back, and I feel like we’ve got it.”
USU takes the field again Friday in Fresno to take on the Bulldogs, and then they go to San Jose to face the Spartans on Sunday.
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