Soccer stumbles during road test
Every streak must come to an end.
Unfortunately for the USU women’s soccer team, its eight-game win streak came to an end against Tulsa Friday night, in Oklahoma.
The team lost a heartbreaker, 1-0, after Claire Hulcer scored off a missed penalty kick in the 76th minute, to seal the tight win.
The Aggies, who have been so sharp this season, came out slow this game, and it came back to haunt them. They weren’t able to play their normal possession-style game or put the kind of consistent pressure on the Tulsa back line as they’ve done in their previous eight victories.
The Aggies were also severely out shot by Tulsa, 15-2.
“We didn’t play poorly, but we didn’t play great. We came out slow,” USU head coach Heather Cairns said. “It was really hard to dig out of that hole. We didn’t create nearly enough scoring opportunities — we only had one real scoring chance.”
Amid all the Aggie struggles and their inability to create chances, they still managed to make it a tight game.
It was 0-0 through the first half, but Tulsa began to show more confidence as the game wore on.
“We made some mental mistakes that allowed them to get confidence,” Cairns said. “So even though it was 0-0 at halftime, they had more confidence, and it showed.”
Up until the 76th minute, it seemed as if the Aggies still might have been able to salvage a draw or squeak out a win, but Tulsa wouldn’t go away and came up with the game-winning goal.
With the game tied, Tulsa was awarded a penalty kick in the 76th minute. The kick was blasted off the bar, but Hulcer was the first to the rebound and finished it nicely, to give Tulsa the 1-0 lead and eventual win.
“It doesn’t change that we won eight in a row,” said Cairns.
The Aggies will look to pull off an upset and start another streak Sunday, when they take on No. 2 Oklahoma State, on the road.
OSU 3, USU 0
The Utah State soccer team traveled to Stillwater, Okla., to take on Oklahoma State University Sunday afternoon.
After a heartbreaking loss to Tulsa University, the Aggies looked to rebound against the Cowboys, but the No. 2 team in the nation was just too much for Utah State to handle.
The Aggies lost 3-nil, giving them a record of 8-2-0 on the season.
The No. 2 Cowboys are the highest ranked team Utah State has ever faced. Their offense is lead by three players who all have double-digit points.
“We played quite well that first half, despite the first four minutes,” head coach Heather Cairns said.
The Aggies were without two starters in the game. Mari Myashiro is still sidelined because of a foot injury, and Kendra Pemberton received a red card against Tulsa Friday. Despite being without two key players, USU performed well but was not able to overcome an early two-goal Cowboy lead.
Oklahoma State came out with an early goal in the 3rd minute, off the foot of Krista Lopez. Lopez’s 3rd-minute goal from six yards out was the fastest goal ever scored on USU senior goalkeeper Molly Merrill.
The Cowboys struck again less than a minute later. Again, it was Lopez who found the back of the net, when she blocked an Aggie clear into the goal, for a quick 2-0 OSU lead.
“When you get yourself into that big of a hole against the No. 2 team in the nation,” Cairns said. “You’re in a little bit of trouble.”
USU had four shots on goal, including two from freshman Lauren Roundy in the first half, but was unable to convert heading into halftime, down 2-0.
Utah State came out of halftime and settled down. The Aggie defense allowed just one goal in the second half but was unable to convert on opportunities.
Oklahoma State’s Elizabeth DeLozier scored from 18 yards out for the Cowboys’ third goal. DeLozier’s goal was assisted by Lopez, who contributed to all three of OSU’s scores.
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Sports senior writer Meredith Kinney also contributed to this report.