Utah State Soccer takes down Utah Tech in blowout victory

Utah State University Women’s Soccer defeated Utah Tech University at home in a lopsided match, winning 8-1. Four minutes into the game, senior midfielder Summer Diamond scored the first goal for the Aggies, giving them the lead for the entirety of the game.  

The Aggies had impressive performances on both sides of the ball. Seven different players scored goals for the Aggies. Samantha Sellers led the team in scoring with two goals, while Ellie Hendrix scored for the third game in a row. Hendrix also led the team with three assists. 

“Ellie’s just being Ellie. I think she’s really confident right now. Sometimes, you know you hit a moment of good form, and you get confident,” head coach Manny Martins said. “In the last three games, she’s got three goals, three or four assists. I mean, she’s just on fire, and it’s our job to make sure that we keep adding fuel to that fire.” 

The other Aggies who scored in Thursday night’s match include Kunie Hirai, Austin Miller, Mia Mullenmeister and Kei Yoneda. The eight combined goals surpass their prior season total of six goals. 

Defensively, the Aggies controlled the game as well, not allowing even one shot on goal in the first half. In total, the Aggies allowed Utah Tech to take just two shots on goal, compared to the Aggies’ 32. The only goal allowed by goalie Ivy Nystrom came in the 78th minute of the game. 

“You can tell they came up here confident, but today we led with our identity, and we’ve been talking all season long that we need to be more consistent leading with our identity, and we know our quality comes after that,” Martins said. “Today we showed that we found our identity. We’re on the front foot. Our transition was great. Our pregame was great, and we showed some moments where the quality of soccer was brilliant. Now we just have to continue to work on being more consistent with that.” 

After two much closer games the week prior, the Aggies felt their preparation helped them to come out and win in such convincing fashion. 

“We really wanted to come this week with more confidence, just in our ability and just knowing that we can put out this kind of game,” Hendrix said. “Coming in and getting that kind of result and having so many different people score and contribute to the win is just awesome — confidence-wise, momentum and going forward.” 

The team felt that their offensive breakout was only a matter of time and hope to carry their momentum into their next matchup. 

“Sometimes it’s a matter of being a little bit patient and letting things really click. I want to say that three games ago we won 1-0, but we probably should have won by three or four,” Martins said. “We’ve been creating more and more. We’re getting more confident in and around the box, and today just started to click. A lot of times when you score two or three, you get into a rhythm, and things start to really pop, and today it did.” 

The Aggies will face off against the University of Colorado in Boulder on Sept. 6. The Aggies go into the matchup with a record of 1-1-1 against Power Four teams this season. They hope this win can propel them into victory this weekend. 

“We’re really excited. They’re a great team, and to go to Colorado and play there will be a challenge, but I think that we know we have the quality,” Hendrix said. “Coming off of a game like this, just with a lot of confidence and a lot of momentum, I think we’re ready to go to Colorado and show them what we got.”