PROVO, Utah – No. 6 BYU women's soccer played to a draw with Cincinnati in a first-ever matchup between the teams, ending 1-1 with the Cougars taking 26 total shots on Thursday evening.
"We have to get off to a better start," said head coach Jennifer Rockwood. "This has happened to us a few times now, and we can't give up a goal against anybody in the first couple minutes of the game. We have to do better. We're really disappointed in our performance overall. I think we worked hard. We had the ball almost the entire game but couldn't find a way to put in the back of the net."
BYU is now 9-1-2, 2-0-2 in conference play, while Cincinnati sits at 2-5-4.
BYU dominated in shots, outshooting the Bearcats 26-6, with seven Cougar shots being on goal. A push in the back in the 47th minute led to a penalty kick goal for Brecken Mozingo, the lone goal for the Cougars.
First Half
The Bearcats gained the upper hand quickly as defender Ashley Barron headed a corner off the post during the second minute, which allowed forward Ellie Flower to tap it in for the goal.
The pitch tilted toward BYU as the Cougars maintained possession for 78% of the half and took five corner kicks. The Cougars fired 12 shots, four on target, matching the Bearcat's average shots allowed per game this season.
Eight different Cougars took shots during the first half, including Olivia Smith-Griffitts, Olivia Wade-Katoa, Ellie Boren, Jamie Shephard, Mozingo, Kendell Petersen, Erin Bailey and Ellie Walbruch.
This game is only the second time this season that the Cougars have gone into halftime down on South Field, the first being against TCU.
Second Half
Quickly after retaking the field, Flower pushed Petersen in the back while in the box, allowing Mozingo to score a penalty kick goal in the 47th minute.
The shots continued as the Cougars added 14 more in the second half with three on goal.
The pattern of possession continued in the second half, as BYU had the ball most of the time. The Cougars fought till the last second, getting three shots off in the final 10 minutes of play.
The Cougars next head to Ames, Iowa, to face off against Big 12 opponent Iowa State on Oct. 2 at 5 pm MT.