On Thursday night, Weber State women’s soccer looked every bit the part of a Big Sky contender as the Wildcats scored early, often and scored again to seize control of the conference standings.
Lily Blum scored twice, and Sayler Schlosser added a goal and an assist as the Wildcats cruised past Utah Tech 5-0 in Ogden.
Simone Packer and Cici Garcia had a goal apiece for Weber State (6-5-2, 2-0-1 Big Sky), and Bonnie Buswell notched two assists as the hosts secured a 1-point lead on Utah Tech (6-5-1, 2-1-0 Big Sky) atop the conference.
Schlosser scored less than 90 seconds from the opening kickoff as the former Lone Peak High standout gave the Wildcats a lead they’d never relinquish.
Blum doubled the advantage in the ninth minute for the first of two goals for the former Olympus High standout en route to a 3-0 halftime lead in the conference home opener.
Lauren Butorac made one save in the first 71 minutes in goal before splitting the shutout with Maya Cordova, who helped complete the Wildcats’ first shutout since Sept. 3 at Pacific.
Weber State hosts Southern Utah on Sunday afternoon, while Utah Tech heads north to Idaho State for a 1 p.m. MT kickoff.
Thunderbirds play to scoreless draw with Bengals
Reigning Big Sky defending player of the week Tatum Trout scattered three saves over 90 minutes to help Southern Utah collect a second consecutive shutout with a scoreless draw against Idaho State in Pocatello.
Rylan Tebbs also started and played 89 minutes as the junior defender became the most capped Cedar City native in program history to move the Thunderbirds to 4-6-2 with a 1-1-1 record in Big Sky play.
Utah State remains perfect in Pac-12 with 2-0 win
Mia Mullenmeister notched her team-high fourth goal of the campaign to help the 17th-ranked Aggies stay unbeaten in Pac-12 play with a 2-0 home win over Washington State.
Kunie Hirai opened the scoring in the 15th minute, converting a penalty kick after her own foul suffered for her third goal of the year.
Mullenmeister doubled the advantage in the 72nd minute, when senior Kate Christian connected with Solena Sellers in traffic before Mullenmeister finished her one-on-one chance to tie for the team lead in goals.
Ivy Nystrom made two saves to earn her seventh clean sheet of the season for Utah State (10-2-2. 3-0-0 Pac-12) before traveling to fellow Pac-12 unbeaten Boise State on Sunday at 1 p.m. MT.
Nickel’s brace helps No. 16 West Virginia hand No. 20 BYU first Big 12 loss
Sophia Nickel scored a pair of second-half goals as 16th-ranked West Virginia handed No. 20 BYU its first loss in Big 12 play, 2-0 Thursday night in Morgantown, W. Va.
BYU (7-3-2, 3-1-1 Big 12) out-shot the Mountaineers 19-9, but Bailey Herfurth had nine saves to secure the shutout for West Virginia (8-1-2, 3-1-1 Big 12) in its second top-25 win of the season.
West Virginia will host fellow Beehive State squad Utah on Sunday, while BYU will continue its two-match road swing Monday at Cincinnati (5 p.m. MT, ESPN+).
Schomaker goal lifts Cincinnati by Utah
Brooklyn Schomaker scored the only goal of the match in the 73rd minute as Cincinnati held off Utah, 1-0 at Gettler Stadium in southern Ohio.
The Utes (4-6-3, 1-3-1 Big 12) out-shot the hosts 9-6 including five shots on target, but couldn’t put one away.
“All credit to Cincinnati today,” Utah coach Hideki Nakada said after the match from Cincinnati. “They were tough, won the majority of the individual duels, and ultimately, that led to the only goal of the game.
“Obviously, the playing surface was different and presented some challenges, but at the end of the day, we needed to be clearer on the ball, stronger in our duels, and sharper in key moments to get a result today.”
