OREM, Utah – Behind a late goal from
Skyler Milne, Utah Valley University earned a landmark win over Grand Canyon University, 1-0, on Friday night at Clyde Field. The victory is the Wolverines' (5-3-1, 1-0-1) first as members of the Western Athletic Conference.
Scoreless for over 83 minutes,
Matt Gay's throw-in set Milne up perfectly for a header that deflected off of Antelopes' keeper Kendyl Day and in. The goal, Milne's second of the season, came in the 84
th minute of UVU's third shutout of the season.
"It was a very disruptive game. There were a lot of fouls and it took us awhile to settle our emotions down," head coach
Greg Maas. "Sometimes in these types of games you have to manufacture a goal and we took our chance well. We probably earned a little bit more out of the game but we'll certainly settle for the 1-0 result."
The first half was foul-plagued with the teams whistled for 26 combined. Grand Canyon (2-7-1, 0-2-0) was called for 16 fouls in the half and 24 in the match to 10 first half fouls against Utah Valley and 13 overall.
Goalkeeper
Collin Partee had three saves in notching his second shutout. UVU out-shot GCU 17-6 overall and 6-3 on goal. The assist was Gay's fourth of the season and give him 14 points to lead the team.
The Wolverines will now face UNLV on Sunday at 11 a.m. MT. The Rebels won at Seattle University, 3-1, on Friday night to move to 2-0 in the WAC.
"Tonight it was absolutely our goal to get that first WAC win and that's historic for our program," Maas said. "But more importantly it builds confidence for Sunday against UNLV. It will be a big-time match for us."
