BOCA RATON, Florida—Sadie Brockbank recorded a brace with a goal in each half and Heather Stainbrook scored the game winner to lead the Utah Valley University women's soccer team to a 5-1 season-opening road win over Florida Atlantic University on Thursday evening at FAU Soccer Stadium.
 
The game against FAU marked UVU's first official match in nearly 15 months. UVU's last official match was played at Seattle U in the 2019 WAC Tournament championship match on Nov. 10, 2019.
 
The win is just UVU's second season-opening road win in the team's 18-year Division I history. FAU, which was picked to win Conference USA this season in the league's preseason coaches' poll, falls to 0-1. The loss is just FAU's first setback at home since dropping a 3-2 overtime match to Florida on Aug. 23, 2019 in the team's 2019 season opener.
 
"In the past, we have struggled on the road and it's something we have wanted to improve," said Utah Valley head coach Chris Lemay. "I was really proud of our team. After conceding the first goal of the match, our players stayed composed and stuck with the game plan. We continued to do the things that we do well and then built upon them as the game progressed. We knew that if we played our best game that we could get a result against a very talented FAU team."
 
FAU got on the early 1-0 lead in the 12th minute after the Owls put it the ball in the box on a fast break and found the back of the net in a fight for the ball.  
 
The Wolverines responded in the 19th minute when Grace Beeston made a nice move and sent a pass through a pair of FAU defenders on the left side to Sadie Brockbank. Brockbank then powered her way to the ball against a defender before firing it to the back of the net on the right side to help UVU even the match, 1-1.
 
The Wolverines took the lead in the 58th minute after Megan Sullivan threw the ball in on the right side to Brockbank who then kicked it up and over to the left side of the box. Nicole Ray got a head on the ball and sent it to the ground where Heather Stainbrook settled the ball and then fired it into the net to give UVU a 2-1 advantage.
 
Utah Valley took a 3-1 lead in the 69th minute after Stainbrook lofted in a free kick from the left side of the box to Sydney Bushman, who headed it into the left side of the goal for the score for her first goal as a Wolverine.
 
Brockbank secured her brace in the 79th minute and gave the Wolverines some cushion after Stainbrook sent a ball down the right side from 35 yards out to Brockbank in stride, who then got it past the FAU keeper to give UVU a 4-1 lead.
 
Anna Pickering scored her first Wolverine goal after London Miller passed the ball forward from inside the left side of the box to a Pickering who then one-touched it into the back of the net in the 88th minute to push the Wolverine lead to a 5-1 advantage.
 
Utah Valley outshot the Owls 11-4 on the night, including a 7-2 advantage on frame. Brockbank, Stainbrook, and Julianna Carter led the Wolverines with two shots apiece. Isabel Jones-Dawe picked up the win in the box for UVU, tallying one save in 90 minutes of play.
 
Utah Valley will continue play in the Sunshine State as the Wolverines now travel to Fort Myers to take on Florida Gulf Coast on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. (MT). The game will be broadcast live on the FGCU YouTube channel.