BACK IN ACTION
Utah State soccer (8-6-5, 5-2-3 MW) enters postseason play this week as it travels to Boise, Idaho for the Boise State-hosted 2025 Mountain West Soccer Championships. All games will be played at the Boas Soccer Complex.
FOLLOW ALONG
Each of this week's matches will be streamed for free on Mountain West Network. Fans can also follow along via StatBroadcast, with stream and stat links available on the team's schedule page at www.utahstateaggies.com.
TOURNAMENT TIME
Utah State earned the 3-seed in this week's tournament after going 5-2-3 to earn 18 points in Mountain West Play. The Aggies will first face 6-seed New Mexico in the quarterfinal round on Sunday, Nov. 2, at 4 p.m. The winner of that match will move on to the semifinals to face 2-seed Air Force on Wednesday, Nov. 5, at 4 p.m. The title game will be held on Sunday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m.
BACK-TO-BACK...TO BACK?
USU enters the Mountain West Tournament in search of its third-straight league championship after winning the tournament each of the past two seasons. This will be the team's first time playing in the quarterfinal round since 2022, as it earned the 2-seed and a first-round bye each of the past two seasons.
Should Utah State three-peat, it would become just the third team to ever do so in the league's history, and first since San Diego State won four-straight from 2012-15.
HEATING UP
Utah State has gained momentum throughout the year and played some of its best soccer of the season during the final stretch of the regular season. Through the first 13 games of the year, the Aggies totaled 13 goals. In the past six, they have scored 22 while allowing just six.
On October 8, USU ranked 252nd in the nation and ninth in the Mountain West in scoring offense. Today, the Aggies rank 75th nationally and second in the MW.
A BRACE OF HAT TRICKS
The senior forward duo of Tess Werts and Kaylie Chambers have each posted hat tricks this season, Werts scoring a program-record four goals against Fresno State on Oct. 9, and Chambers netting three goals in a senior day win over San José State on Oct. 26.
This is just the second time in program history that multiple Utah State players have recorded hat tricks in the same season. The previous instance was in 1999 with Jayme Gordy and Brigid Turner.
NOT ONE, NOT TWO, NOT THREE...
Senior forward Tess Werts had a historic performance against Fresno State on Oct. 9, scoring a program-record four goals. These were the first four goals of the season for the team's leading scorer from 2024. She became the first Aggie to ever score four goals in a game and the first to record a hat trick since 2018. She also matched the Mountain West single-game goals record, and became just the fifth player in league history to score four goals in a MW match.
BRAZILLING 'EM
• Utah State has earned two 7-1 victories this season, defeating Fresno State on Oct. 9, and San José State on Oct. 26.
• Seven goals are tied for the fifth-most in program history, and are the most goals ever scored in a Mountain West game by the Aggies.
• The team's +6 goal differential in those games is tied for the best in a Mountain West game.
MOVING UP THE LEADERBOARD
• Several Aggie players continue to move up career leaderboards this season.
• Chambers is up to 20 career assists, ranking second in program history. Werts is right behind, tied for third with 19 career assists. Graduate midfielder Rine Yonaha also recently broke into the top-10, ranking tied for seventh with 15 career helpers.
• Chambers has 56 points in her career, good for seventh in program history. Werts is close behind with 53 career points, eight-most in USU history.
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Freshman forward Hadli Barrera earned Mountain West Freshman of the Week honors last week after a pair of strong performances. Barrera recorded a goal and an assist against Nevada, then followed that performance with two goals against San José State for a total of seven points on the week. Her brace against the Spartans was the first by an Aggie freshman since Summer Diamond in 2023.
AMONG THE BEST
Utah State currently ranks in the top 75 nationally in several major statistical categories, including: assists (32nd - 1.95), goal differential (51st - +17), points (59th - 5.63), shots (70th - 14.95) and scoring offense (75th - 1.84).
SPREADING THE WEALTH
Utah State's 35 goals this season have come from all across the roster, with 11 different players scoring at least once. Ten different players have scored two or more goals this season, while 14 different players have recorded at least one assist.
SHOOT YOUR SHOT
• Utah State has taken as many or more shots than its opponent in 17 of 19 games this season. On the year, the team has a 284-144 shots advantage including a 127-57 advantage in shots on goal.
• The Aggies have limited 16 opponents to less than 10 shots and have not let a single opponent take more than five shots on goal.
U-S-A, U-S-A!
Utah State was without freshman defender Capriel Winder for a week, as she participated with the United States U-20 Women's National Team at its training camp in Kansas City Oct. 22-30, in preparation for the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. Winder is having a stellar freshman campaign for Utah State, having started all 17 matches on the defensive backline aside from the two she missed for the camp and playing 1,470 of a possible 1,531 minutes.
WELCOME TO BELL
• Utah State posted a second-consecutive undefeated season at home this year, going 6-0-3 at Chuck and Gloria Bell Field.
• In the past four years under Manny Martins, Utah State holds a 36-5-9 home record. During those games, the Aggies have out-scored opponents by a combined 114-34.
• In the last two seasons, USU is 13-0-5 at home and has out-scored opponents by a combined 58-10.
• All-time, Utah State is 131-49-33 at home.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Under coach Manny Martins, USU has established a reputation as one of the nation's top defenses, allowing less than a goal per game all five seasons. Currently, the Aggies are limiting opponents to 0.95 goals per game this season. Four of the top seven seasons for goals allowed average in program history have come under Martins.
