PROVO, Utah – An aggressive offense from No. 2 seed BYU secured the 5-1 win over Boise State in the first round of the NCAA tournament Friday night at South Field.
“It was an exciting night for BYU soccer,” BYU head coach Jennifer Rockwood said. “The girls have worked really hard to host an NCAA tournament game at home and we had great fans that provided a great environment. The girls really came alive in the second half to put a lot of pressure on Boise State and get the win. I’m really pleased with the way we finished up the game and we’re excited to move on to the next round.”
The Cougars (19-0-1) scored the first goal of the game in the 19th minute. Mikayla Colohan took a strong shot off a free-kick, but the ball was tipped over the post by the Boise State goalie, resulting in a corner kick. Off the corner kick, Jamie Shepherd and SaraJayne Affleck assisted Cameron Tucker who connected with the back of the net to score BYU’s first goal.
One minute later, off an assist by Elise Flake, Tucker locked in her second goal of the night after blasting a shot past the Boise State (18-5-0) goalkeeper, extending the Cougars lead to 2-0. The Broncos answered with their first and only goal of the night in the 22nd minute off a header to bring the score to 2-1 at halftime.
Kicking off the second half, Lizzy Braby wove through the Boise State defense and set Shepherd up at the top of the box, where she ripped a shot to put BYU up 3-1. In the 64th minute, a header from Affleck skimmed the keeper’s fingers and connected with the back of the net, extending the Cougar lead to 4-1 over the Broncos.
In the 67th minute, Tucker played through contact and fed the ball to Flake, who ripped a shot and landed BYU its fifth and final goal of the night.
On the game, the Cougars outshot Boise State 21 to six while recording 13 corner kicks.
BYU will host the second and third rounds of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, Nov. 21 and Saturday, Nov. 23. On Thursday, Arkansas plays NC State at 3 p.m. MST and BYU hosts Louisville at 6 p.m. MST.
Tickets will go on sale to season ticket holders and Cougar Club members tomorrow, Nov. 16, at 9 a.m. MST and tickets to the general public will be available on Monday, Nov. 18, at 12 p.m. MST, by calling the BYU ticket office at 801-422-2981.
GAME NOTES
- BYU took 13 corner kicks while not giving up any corner kicks to Boise State.
- Cameron Tucker's pair of goals brought her to nine this season and 16 on her career.
- Elise Flake scored her 19th goal of the season. She is currently fifth in the BYU record book for career goals with 39.
- SaraJayne Affleck scored her fourth goal of the season and Jamie Shepherd now has two.
- Lizzy Braby dished out her 12th and 13th assists of the season, bringing her career total to 18 assists.
- This is the 11th time the Cougars have played in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
ADDITIONAL QUOTES
BYU forward Cameron Tucker
On getting opportunities in the first half
"We talked at the beginning of the game about me getting touches in the box and getting my shot off, so I just knew going into the game that I had to focus on getting touches in the box, so that’s what I did."
On moving on in the tournament
"It’s exciting. We’ve been working so hard all season to get here and to keep on going. To get this win was really exciting and rewarding. We’re anxious to continue to win."
BYU midfielder Lizzy Braby
On setting up teammates for goals
"My goal in the second half was to get to the end line and get my crosses off, which is my goal every game. We haven’t switched up what we do, so that was my emphasis and that’s what I did. When they were beating me end line, a lot of times they tried to slide tackle the ball out, which I love because I can do my cut back and find someone running in. I know my teammates are going to be in the box so whether it’s the perfect ball or not, they’re going to be there and get something on it. As for the second assist, I don’t think we look at the back post that often, but when it’s there and when it’s open, we try to play it a few times and SJ was there to get the header. We capitalized on those opportunities."