Box Score

PROVO, Utah -

BYU 1, Utah State 0

In a defensive battle against a long-time in-state rival, Utah State soccer fell to No. 5 BYU Thursday, as the Cougars scored a late goal to clinch the match.

Despite a BYU offense that took 35 total shots on the night, the Aggie defense held strong, refusing to let the ball through. Senior Jeannie Woller played the full night in the net for the Aggies, tallying eight saves and deflecting several other close shots from the Cougars.

With the loss, Utah State falls to 3-3-1 on the, while BYU improves to 5-1-0.

Play stayed heavily in USU's defending third early on Thursday, as the Cougars out-shot USU 23-7 in the first half. The Aggie defense held strong, however, as this was just the second match of the year where BYU did not score in the first 16 minutes of play.

The stalemate continued through the first half as the Aggies gained a bit of offensive momentum as all of the team's on-frame shots came in the later minutes of the half. After 45 minutes of play, the score remained 0-0, with credit to Woller who tallied five saves to keep the Cougars off the board.

The offense evened out as the second half began, where the Aggies were able to slow the Cougars down. In the 87th minute, the officials issued a yellow card to USU sophomore midfielder Wesley Hamblin. On the ensuing free kick, BYU's Bizzy Phillips angled the ball perfectly to slide into the goal.

After three-straight road matches, the Aggies return home to close out the weekend on Sunday, September 13 to host border foe Idaho State at 1 p.m.

Fans can follow the Aggie soccer program on Twitter, @USUSoccer, on Facebook at /USUSoccer or on Instagram, @USUSoccer. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter, @USUAthletics, Facebook at /USUAthletics and on Instagram, @USUAthletics.