LOGAN β Utah State soccer continued its hot start to the season, downing Texas Tech 2-0 make it three wins in three games to begin the 2024 campaign. And a day after the Aggies’ victory over the Red Raiders, two USU athletes received Mountain West player of the week honors.
USU entered Sunday’s contest already at 2-0 thanks to wins over Pepperdine (4-0) and Hawaii (3-0). Those dominant wins showcased the Aggies’ potential this upcoming season, already rather high after finishing second in the 2023 regular season standings and winning the Mountain West conference tournament. Scoring seven goals in two games isn’t something last year’s squad was very capable of as the team only had two games with more than two goals all season.
Texas Tech, which beat Utah State 3-0 in Lubbock, Texas a year ago, is the reigning Big 12 champions and were predicted to finish second in the preseason coaches poll (the lone team ahead of them, BYU, is currently No. 4 in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll and TTU still pulled six first-place votes).
Suffice to say a victory over the Red Raiders would prove quite a bit for Utah State.
The Aggies didn’t back down in the slightest against the visitors, scoring goals in the 15th and 27th minute to take the two-goal lead that would eventually become the margin of victory. True freshman Austin Miller opener her career goal scoring account by netting the first goal on an assist from Kylie Chambers. Just under 12 minutes later, Tess Werts scored her third goal of the season after a brilliant bit of pressure from Bizzy Arevalo forced a turnover right at the top of the penalty box.
AGGIES STRIKE FIRST π₯The first career goal for freshman Austin Miller gives the Aggies an early lead in the 15th minute!USU 1 – TT 0 pic.twitter.com/WwhB59lpiD
β USU Soccer (@USUSoccer) August 25, 2024
πΎππππππΈπΈπΈπΈππππππBizzy with the takeaway to set up Tess Werts! Aggies lead 2-0 in the 27th minute! pic.twitter.com/FTvAQu5yKB
β USU Soccer (@USUSoccer) August 25, 2024
Another major performance in the game came from goalkeeper Shay Kercher-Pratt. In her second-ever game playing for USU, the redshirt freshman tallied six saves from an increasingly desperate Texas Tech side. Kercher-Pratt now has two clean sheets to her name this year in as many appearances in goal.
Shay AIN’T having it! pic.twitter.com/o93GJDybK5
β USU Soccer (@USUSoccer) August 25, 2024
Kercher-Pratt’s performance earned her the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week honor, the second Aggie to do so this week (Kylie Olsen last week). Miller was named the MW Freshman of the Week for her contributions in the win over Texas Tech which included her first career start, 40 minutes played and, obviously, the opening goal.
Utah State’s next test will be a tour of Utah of sorts. The Aggies will travel to face the University of Utah (Aug. 28), No. 4 BYU (Aug. 31) and UVU (Sept. 5) in the next week-and-a-half before returning home to face Pacific.
