Women’s soccer lose first round of NCAA tournament after weather delay
A successful and promising season of Utah State women’s soccer came to an end on Saturday. The Aggies traveled to Provo to take on BYU in the first round of the NCAA College Cup and fell 2-1 against a BYU squad that earned a No.1 seed in the tournament and are ranked second in the nation.
“It’s obviously disappointing to lose, especially at this point of the season when you lose you go home,” USU head coach Heather Cairns said. “That was the No. 2 team in the country and it was 2-1 and we had our chances. We hung with them and were the better team at times. I’m so proud of this team and the way they fought. I couldn’t be prouder.”
The game was originally scheduled to be played on Friday night but was postponed until Saturday due to the snow accumulation on the field.
The Aggies finished the season with a 13-3-6 record. The three losses are the fewest in school history, with two of those losses coming against the Cougars. The first meeting took place on Sept. 20 when USU hosted No. 12 BYU and Cougars came away with a 1-0 victory after Dana Oldroyd scored the lone goal of the match in the 10th minute.
USU went into the game Saturday as the WAC tournament champions and were riding an 11 game unbeaten streak. BYU entered the game with an 18-1-1 record and hadn’t lost in 17 games en route to winning the West Coast Conference regular season and tournament titles.
“This was an incredibly hard draw,” Cairns said. “This was a testament to how hard our girls play and to how talented they are.”
The Aggies are now 0-11 all-time against their rivals from down south.
USU came out of the gates firing and earned a quick corner kick. Junior Jennifer Flynn had her shot sail over the crossbar.
The Cougars went on an attacking stretch of their own when they fired five shots at the USU goal in a matter of six minutes. The Aggies defense held strong just like they had other times during the season.
USU’s first shot on goal came in the 27th minute when junior Mari Miyashiro had her shot saved by BYU goalkeeper Erica Owens.
BYU broke the deadlock in the 30th minute when senior Jessica Ringwood got through the USU defense and put the ball past Aggie senior goalkeeper Ashlyn Mulford. It was Ringwood’s ninth goal of the season.
It didn’t take long for the Cougars to double the score when freshman Marissa Nimmar came off the bench to make the score 2-0 in the 39th minute. The goal originated at the feet of Ringwood and midfielder Paige Hunt.
BYU went into halftime with a comfortable lead. The Cougars outshot the Aggies 10-5 in the half.
The second half began well for USU and they were able to produce a goal in the 47th minute. It all began with a free kick by sophomore defender Taryn Rose. Junior Jackie Tillotson pushed the ball past Owen after an incomplete save by the BYU goalkeeper. It was Tillotson’s second goal of the season and breathed new life into the USU team.
After the USU goal, both teams had opportunities to score. Junior Kendra Pemberton had a great chance to tie the game in the 81st minute. Owen saved the ball with the tips of her fingers and the ball hit the crossbar.
As the final minutes ticked off the clock, the Aggies were not able to equalize as BYU held on for the 2-1 victory in a physical game. This was the first time USU allowed more than one goal in a match all season.
“It’s not good enough to just make the NCAA Tournament, that has to be the minimum,” Cairns said. “In years past that wasn’t always the case, it was ‘Let’s hope we make the NCAA Tournament.’ Now it has turned into an expectation.”
For seniors Natalie Norris, Ashlyn Mulford and Kami Montgomery, it was the last time they will put on the USU uniform.
“My four years here at Utah State have been amazing,” Norris said. “To watch the progress as it has especially the last two years, to make history on our own, to be able to put everything behind us in the past and continue to move forward has been a major accomplishment for us. I know that from now on every team will strive for the NCAA Tournament.”
BYU will take on Auburn in the second round. The Tigers defeated Washington 2-1.
– jborba@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @JBorba15