The BYU women’s soccer team earned its first victory of the season as the Cougars defeated Oregon State 3-0 on Monday.
“We worked really hard for this one and I think we felt the momentum coming,” said BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood. “I felt the girls were really prepared today and it showed as we got off to a great start from the whistle.”
The three-goal outburst matched the team’s total goals scored through the first six games of the season; heading into the game against the Beavers, the Cougars had only scored three goals in six matches which led to a 0-3-3 record.
Scoring and playing time were well distributed across the team, with three different players hitting the back of the net and a total of 20 players taking the field over the course of the game for BYU.
Forward Elise Flake scored her first goal of the season in the third minute of play, giving the Cougars an early lead and confidence boost.
Nadia Gomes, the lone goal scorer from Friday’s match against Utah, was very active in the opening minutes. She assisted on Flake’s goal and got off a shot of her own in the second minute that went just wide.
The Cougars would go on to take five shots on goal in the first 18 minutes of the match.
The Cougars continued the first half scoring barrage with strikes by Avery Walker in the 24th minute and Madie Lyons Mathews in the 38th. Walker’s goal was her second of the season and Mathews’ was her first.
BYU outshot Oregon State 17-8 over the entire game, with 11 of those being shots on goal.
The Cougars’ defense has been solid all season, and tonight that led to increased opportunities for their offense. The backline was able to hold the Beavers to only three shots on goal the whole night, and goalkeeper Hannah Clark earned her second clean sheet of the season.
Overall, the Cougars looked more than comfortable on the offensive side of the pitch, which was a welcome sight after the somewhat stagnant offense seen to this point in the season.
The Cougars will try to keep the momentum going as they travel to Arizona this Friday. The game will kick off at 8 p.m. MDT and will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network and BYU Radio-Sirius XM 143.
