Men’s soccer comes up short on muddy field against WSU
At a soggy Tower Field, the Utah State University men’s soccer club was narrowly defeated by the Weber State University Wildcats in a 3-2 battle Monday evening.
Throughout, game players were having trouble keeping their footing on what USU goalkeeper Paul Dowdy said was a mushy field. Dowdy said it could have been worse though.
Early on, Utah State pushed Weber and got a couple of shots, but was unable to slide one past the Wildcat goalkeeper.
Shortly after USU got their second shot, Weber got their first. About four minutes of play had elapsed and Weber was able to break a player loose for a good shot at the goal. Aggie goalie Bryan Easterman moved out to play the ball, but the Wildcat player was able to shoot around Easterman and put the ball into the net for the first goal of the game.
Weber’s one goal lead did not last long though. Utah State was working the ball hard into the Weber half of the field and only strong Weber defense prevented easy looks by the Aggies.
On a drive 12 minutes into the game, a Utah State player was pushed to the ground right on the edge of the goal box in the center of the field. USU was only feet away from receiving a penalty kick, but instead, the referees called the foul outside of the box and gave the Aggies the free kick.
Weber State set up a wall in front of the ball as midfielder Brandon Peterson was preparing to take the kick. Right before Peterson kicked the ball, Utah State players broke around the wall to position themselves.
On the kick, Peterson bent the ball around the wall and put it in on the far post, leaving the WSU goalkeeper little chance of stopping the shot. The goal tied the game at 1-1.
The game remained close and both teams appeared evenly matched. Weber State tried several times to break players free and make runs at the goal, but the USU defense was able to respond and clear the ball, giving USU their own chance.
As the two teams worked the ball up the field, their respective styles of play became apparent. While Weber used quickness and sent players on runs down the field, Utah State worked as a team.
“We try to work the ball down as a unit,” Dowdy said. “Weber uses their speed and tries a lot of long balls.”
Working as a unit, the Aggies had several chances but were stifled by the tough Weber defense several times throughout the half. The Aggies seemed to be picking up the momentum though, especially after an altercation between midfielder Justus Loyet and a Weber State player 30 minutes into the game.
On the play, the Weber State player made a strong tackle on Loyet and it appeared he tried to punch Loyet as they were falling to the ground. The referee gave both players yellow cards, though the reaction by the fans and Aggie bench showed they thought the Weber State player should have received a red card.
Dowdy said he also thought a red card should have been given, but the referee was on the far side of the two players and did not see the entire play.
Following the altercation, both teams seemed to pick up their level of play. The game became much more intense and physical. USU had several more opportunities and was keeping Weber away from the goal.
One USU opportunity came after forward Jared Hanks was leveled trying to get the ball and Utah State was given a free kick. Peterson took the kick and made a pass to forward Neal Obray who tried for the header but missed and Weber was able to clear the ball.
Utah State was still controlling the ball a few minutes later when they tried to pass the ball back onto their side of the field to set up their offense. Weber chased the ball in, and when the Aggies tried to pass the ball to Easterman so he could clear it, Weber State made a strong run on the ball. Easterman came out of the net, trying to kick the ball out, but on his slide attempt, the ball went off a Weber State player and bounced behind Easterman, rolling into the goal and putting Weber up 2-1.
Five minutes later, with less than two minutes left in the half, Weber struck again. As the ball entered the Utah State goal box, Easterman went for the save but it made it past him. A USU player slid in, trying to kick the ball out but was too late as the ball ended up in the far side of the net, giving Weber State its third goal of the game.
In the second half, with two goals to make-up, Utah State came out strong. After an early shot barely going wide, Utah State was able to score only seven minutes into the half.
Peterson received the ball and was taking it down the far side. Loyet was streaking down the middle calling for the ball. Though a Weber State player had Loyet marked, Loyet had him beat and took the one-time sliding shot off the pass from Peterson, putting the ball past the Weber State goalie into the net.
This goal put Utah State back within one, but it was as close as the Aggies would get. Both sides had several scoring chances through the remainder of the half, but neither team found the net.
Weber had a couple of different one-on-one opportunities against Easterman, but great Aggie defense and goaltending by Easterman kept Weber State out of the net. The closest Weber would be able to come was a couple of shots ricocheting off the post.
The story was basically the same on the USU side of the ball. Despite several impressive plays to work into shots, Utah State was not able to slip another ball passed the Weber State goalkeeper.
“I was proud of our team hanging tough,” Dowdy said.
Though Weber State had a quicker team and USU did not match up to them in size, Dowdy said the Aggies played them well. To help offset the size and quickness difference, USU used many of the players on their bench.
“We cycled in our young players. They played well,” Dowdy said.
Though the Aggies did not come away with the victory, Dowdy said Utah State played strong and Weber caught some lucky breaks.
“It was an even match, we controlled the game well,” Dowdy said. “We battled back tough and showed heart.”
Utah State will play Weber State once more at home this year, and Dowdy said he expects USU to be much stronger. Weber is a tough team and is in the top five or 10 in the nation every year, Dowdy said.
“I hope everyone has a positive attitude after this game,” Dowdy said. “This game shows the character of our team.”
Despite it being a cool afternoon, Dowdy said he was glad fans were able to make it out to the game. Though they were huddled in blankets on the bleachers on the south side of the field, the fans were rowdy and into the game.
“It was a good turnout for being cold,” Dowdy said.
USU will be in action again this Friday when they travel to Orem to take on the Utah Valley State College Wolverines at 5 p.m.
This will be the second time the teams have matched up.
In their previous meeting in Logan, the Aggies defeated UVSC 5-0.
“If we play our game, I think we should come out on top.” Dowdy said.