Back in Action
Utah State soccer (3-5-1, 0-0 MW) hits the road to open the Mountain West Conference portion of its 2023 slate this weekend as the Aggies travel to Colorado Springs, Colorado, to take on Air Force on Thursday, Sept. 21, at 6 p.m., followed by a match against Colorado College on Sunday, Sept. 24, at noon.
Follow Along
Both of this week’s matches will be streamed free on Mountain West Network. Fans can follow along with the contests via live stats online, with stream and stat links available at www.utahstateaggies.com.
Series History
• Utah State and Air Force have met up 15 times in a series which dates back to 1996.
• The Aggies are 8-3-3 in the series, and have won three of the past four meetings. When the teams met last year, USU came out on top with a 2-0 win in Logan.
• Utah State and Colorado College have met up 14 times in a series which dates back to 2010.
• The Tigers lead the series 5-3-5, with USU’s last win coming in 2019. When the teams met last year, Colorado College earned a 1-0 win in Logan.
Scouting the Falcons
• Air Force enters Thursday’s contest with a 3-4 record, having earned non-conference wins over Stetson, Northern Colorado and Hawai’i.
• The Falcons have been led in scoring this season by senior forward/midfielder Jordi Ives and sophomore forward Caeli Sherman, who each have three goals. Junior forward/midfielder Mia Otero leads the squad with three assists.
Scouting the Tigers
• Colorado College enters the week still in search of its first win, posting an 0-6-1 record in non-conference play.
• The Tigers have been led in scoring this season by senior forward Shalom Prince, who has two goals on the year. Three different players lead the squad with one assist apiece.
At the Peak
• With the non-conference portion of its season in the rearview, Utah State now enters Mountain West play for the remainder of the regular season.
• The Aggies went 5-3-3 in league play last season, finishing tied for fourth.
• USU is undefeated in conference openers under head coach Manny Martins, earning wins in each of the past two league lidlifters.
Down Goes No. 1
• In its most recent contest last Saturday, Utah State stunned the unanimous No. 1 team in the country, earning a 1-0 win over in-state rival BYU.
• In front of a record-setting crowd of 2,013 at Chuck and Gloria Bell Field, the Aggies earned what was just the second win over a No. 1-ranked opponent by any team in Utah State history.
• Sophomore midfielder Kaylie Chambers split a pair of defenders in the 51st minute with a pass to freshman midfielder Summer Diamond, who rocketed a left-footed shot into the bottom corner of the net past the diving reach of the BYU keeper for the game’s only goal.
Walton Earns National Recognition
• After helping USU post a shutout against the nation’s third-highest scoring offense in USU’s win against No. 1 BYU, graduate goalkeeper Diera Walton was named the College Soccer News National Player of the Week.
• Walton recorded a season-high six saves in the match. This was the 23rd clean sheet of her career, making her the program’s all-time shutout leader.
A Pair of MW Honors
The USU duo of Diera Walton and Summer Diamond were honored by the conference for their performances in last week’s win over No. 1 BYU, being named Mountain West Defensive Player and Freshman of the Week, respectively.
In The Polls
In the Mountain West preseason poll, Utah State was picked to finish fifth in the league with 91 points. Air Force was picked 10th with 33 points, while Colorado College was slated eighth with 50 points.
Putting it to the Test
Utah State’s non-conference schedule this season was one of its toughest in recent history. Eight of the Aggies’ nine opponents currently have winning records, while they have posted a combined record of 44-18-19.
Locking it Down
Holding opponents to just 1.11 goals per game, Utah State currently has the fourth-best goals allowed average in the Mountain West.
Keeping Bizzy
Utah State junior attacker Bizzy Arevalo played an integral role in USU’s win over South Dakota State on Sept. 1, posting the first three-point performance of her career. Arevalo set the tone early with a goal in the ninth minute. She then beat out a defender in the 28th minute to find Nicole Hadlock-Hardy in front of the net for a goal to put the Aggies up 2-0.
She’s Going the Distance
Through three years at USU, senior defender Kelsey Kaufusi has played 5,748 of a possible 5,752 minutes, playing and starting in all 62 career games.
Utah State soccer (3-5-1, 0-0 MW) hits the road to open the Mountain West Conference portion of its 2023 slate this weekend as the Aggies travel to Colorado Springs, Colorado, to take on Air Force on Thursday, Sept. 21, at 6 p.m., followed by a match against Colorado College on Sunday, Sept. 24, at noon.
Follow Along
Both of this week’s matches will be streamed free on Mountain West Network. Fans can follow along with the contests via live stats online, with stream and stat links available at www.utahstateaggies.com.
Series History
• Utah State and Air Force have met up 15 times in a series which dates back to 1996.
• The Aggies are 8-3-3 in the series, and have won three of the past four meetings. When the teams met last year, USU came out on top with a 2-0 win in Logan.
• Utah State and Colorado College have met up 14 times in a series which dates back to 2010.
• The Tigers lead the series 5-3-5, with USU’s last win coming in 2019. When the teams met last year, Colorado College earned a 1-0 win in Logan.
Scouting the Falcons
• Air Force enters Thursday’s contest with a 3-4 record, having earned non-conference wins over Stetson, Northern Colorado and Hawai’i.
• The Falcons have been led in scoring this season by senior forward/midfielder Jordi Ives and sophomore forward Caeli Sherman, who each have three goals. Junior forward/midfielder Mia Otero leads the squad with three assists.
Scouting the Tigers
• Colorado College enters the week still in search of its first win, posting an 0-6-1 record in non-conference play.
• The Tigers have been led in scoring this season by senior forward Shalom Prince, who has two goals on the year. Three different players lead the squad with one assist apiece.
At the Peak
• With the non-conference portion of its season in the rearview, Utah State now enters Mountain West play for the remainder of the regular season.
• The Aggies went 5-3-3 in league play last season, finishing tied for fourth.
• USU is undefeated in conference openers under head coach Manny Martins, earning wins in each of the past two league lidlifters.
Down Goes No. 1
• In its most recent contest last Saturday, Utah State stunned the unanimous No. 1 team in the country, earning a 1-0 win over in-state rival BYU.
• In front of a record-setting crowd of 2,013 at Chuck and Gloria Bell Field, the Aggies earned what was just the second win over a No. 1-ranked opponent by any team in Utah State history.
• Sophomore midfielder Kaylie Chambers split a pair of defenders in the 51st minute with a pass to freshman midfielder Summer Diamond, who rocketed a left-footed shot into the bottom corner of the net past the diving reach of the BYU keeper for the game’s only goal.
Walton Earns National Recognition
• After helping USU post a shutout against the nation’s third-highest scoring offense in USU’s win against No. 1 BYU, graduate goalkeeper Diera Walton was named the College Soccer News National Player of the Week.
• Walton recorded a season-high six saves in the match. This was the 23rd clean sheet of her career, making her the program’s all-time shutout leader.
A Pair of MW Honors
The USU duo of Diera Walton and Summer Diamond were honored by the conference for their performances in last week’s win over No. 1 BYU, being named Mountain West Defensive Player and Freshman of the Week, respectively.
In The Polls
In the Mountain West preseason poll, Utah State was picked to finish fifth in the league with 91 points. Air Force was picked 10th with 33 points, while Colorado College was slated eighth with 50 points.
Putting it to the Test
Utah State’s non-conference schedule this season was one of its toughest in recent history. Eight of the Aggies’ nine opponents currently have winning records, while they have posted a combined record of 44-18-19.
Locking it Down
Holding opponents to just 1.11 goals per game, Utah State currently has the fourth-best goals allowed average in the Mountain West.
Keeping Bizzy
Utah State junior attacker Bizzy Arevalo played an integral role in USU’s win over South Dakota State on Sept. 1, posting the first three-point performance of her career. Arevalo set the tone early with a goal in the ninth minute. She then beat out a defender in the 28th minute to find Nicole Hadlock-Hardy in front of the net for a goal to put the Aggies up 2-0.
She’s Going the Distance
Through three years at USU, senior defender Kelsey Kaufusi has played 5,748 of a possible 5,752 minutes, playing and starting in all 62 career games.
