BACK IN ACTION
Utah State soccer (10-6-6, 5-2-3 MW) will play in its third-straight NCAA Tournament this week, as the Aggies travel to Provo, Utah, to face BYU in the opening round on Friday, Nov. 14, at 6 p.m., at BYU's South Field.
FOLLOW ALONG
Friday's match will be streamed on ESPN+. Fans can also follow along via StatBroadcast, with stream and stat links available on the team's schedule page at www.utahstateaggies.com.
THREE-PEAT
Utah State made a run through the Mountain West Tournament to earn the league's automatic NCAA Tournament bid for the third-straight season. After entering the tournament as the conference's 3-seed, the Aggies went on a revenge tour, defeating three-straight teams that they lost to or drew with during the regular season. This included a 1-0 win over New Mexico, a 1-0 overtime win over Air Force, and penalty kick shootout win after a 2-2 draw with Boise State.
The Aggies are just the third team in league history to ever win three-straight MW titles.
WHAT'S THE SCENARIO?
The winner of Friday's game between Utah State and BYU will move on to the second round, to face the winner of Pepperdine and 4-seed UCLA on Thursday, Nov. 20, at a location to be determined.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Utah State enters this matchup in search of its first-ever NCAA Tournament win. The Aggies have gone dancing four times previously, but have yet to make it past the opening round. Last season, USU drew at home with Washington before falling in penalty kicks.
This will be the third time Utah State and BYU have met in the postseason, previously facing off in both 2012 and 2023.
MOUNTAIN WEST ACCOLADES
Five Utah State players earned Mountain West postseason accolades this year, including three players on the first team and two on the second team. All-MW first teamers included the senior forward duo of Tess Werts and Kaylie Chambers, along with graduate defender Carli Conner. Earning second-team accolades were sophomore midfielder Austin Miller and graduate goalkeeper Taylor Rath.
STEPPING UP TO THE MOMENT
In Utah State's run to the Mountain West title last week, several overlooked Aggie players were required to step up in big moments.
• True freshman forward Kunie Hirai, playing in her hometown of Boise, scored the game's lone goal, a 71st minute strike, in USU's 1-0 quarterfinal round win over Air Force.
• Sophomore midfielder Rachel Reitz netted the first goal of her career in 97th minute of Utah State's semifinal round victory over Air Force.
• Graduate goalkeeper Taylor Rath, after not playing a minute in net the entire tournament, entered for a PK shootout in the title game against Boise State and made two saves in four rounds to earn tournament most valuable player honors.
• Sophomore midfielder Talia Winder, also having not played a single minute during the MW Tournament, delivered a penalty kick goal during USU's PK shootout against Boise State.
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 seventh with 16 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.
AGGIES VS COUGARS
Friday's contest will be the 19th all-time meeting between Utah State and BYU. The Cougars lead the all-time series 15-3-1, though all three of USU's wins have come in the past five years under head coach Manny Martins.
When the sides met earlier this season in Provo, BYU earned a 2-0 win. The Aggies posted a 23-12 shots advantage, but allowed two early goals in the loss.
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.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
Utah State's 39 goals this season have come from all across the roster, with 12 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 19 of 22 games this season. On the year, the team has a 322-174 shots advantage including a 139-64 advantage in shots on goal.
• The Aggies have limited 18 opponents to less than 10 shots and have not let a single opponent take more than five shots on goal.
