OREM—
Faith Webber and
Heather Stainbrook each recorded a brace while the Utah Valley defense secured its fifth shutout of the season in a 5-0 win over in-state foe Southern Utah on Thursday night at Clyde Field.
Utah Valley improves to 12-3-3 overall and 8-1-1 in WAC play. SUU falls to 9-5-2 overall and 4-4-2 in league play. The win marks Utah Valley's fifth straight victory as the team improves to an impressive 7-1-1 at home this season. The win is the 99th victory at Clyde Field.
"I'm really happy with the total team effort," said Utah Valley head coach
Chris Lemay. "I loved our concetration and execution. We created a lot of great scoring opportunities. To put five up is awesome and the shutout is always great. To be fair, we could have scored more goals. We're starting to hit our stride at the best time of the season. We're looking forward to Saturday where we will have the opportunity to pick up the 100th win on Clyde Field, celebrate our seniors, and win a WAC regular season championship. We everything in the world to play for on Saturday night."
The Wolverines got on the scoreboard in the 19th minute as
Hannah Lee dribbled the ball up the right side of the field and then avoided SUU defenders just inside the six before sending it back to
Heather Stainbrook. Stainbrook then fired it into the back of the net to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead.
Utah Valley went up 2-0 when
Julianna Carter sent a ball down toward the goal line on the right side to
Faith Webber. Webber took a shot on the right side of the goal near the line and sent a shot into the goal in the 28th minute.
Webber secured her brace in the 39th minute as UVU's Lee sent a short corner to Carter who then sent a cross into the box. Webber then fired a shot into the net to give Utah Valley a 3-0 lead.
Ashley Hughes sent a ball up the field to
Taylor Nelson in the 67th minute. Nelson then led Lee with a ball inside the box. Lee then fired a shot past the SUU keeper and into the net to give the Wolverines a 4-0 advantage.
Just a minute later in the 69th minute
Isabella Stewart was fouled from behind inside the box and the Wolverines were awarded a penalty kick. Stainbrook connected on the PK to give UVU a 5-0 lead.
Utah Valley outshot Southern Utah 29-3, which included an 11-0 advantage on goal. Stainbrook led the Wolverines with 10 shots, followed by Lee with eight. Webber tallied seven shots with four on frame.
Leah Wolf and
Hailey Hillock combined for the clean sheet in the box.
Utah Valley will wrap up regular season play at home on Saturday against Utah Tech. UVU's seniors will be honored prior to the match. The game is set to kick off at 6 p.m. A win over Utah Tech would secure the Wolverines the outright WAC regular season title and the No. 1 seed at next week's WAC Tournament in Seattle.