SACRAMENTO — Isaac Emojong and Keith Willey each found the back of the net against their hometown team to lead Utah Valley to a 3-1 win against the Sacramento State Hornets on Thursday in the California capital.
Emojong and Willey — who are from nearby Davis and Newcastle respectively — netted their first collegiate goals in front of a strong contingent of Wolverine supporters on the road in Sacramento. Omar Yehya — a California native himself, albeit from the southern half of the state in Redlands — also scored to ice the game in the closing stages of the match.
Gilles Aurelien, Naime Odeh, and Souley Diouf each picked up assists in their first game as Wolverines. Diouf assisted on both of the second half goals.
The win extends Utah Valley's impressive unbeaten run in regular season openers to 11 games — all 11 season openers in program history. The Wolverines have 10 wins and one draw all-time in regular season openers, with the lone draw coming on the road at Canisius in 2021.
Sacramento State took an early lead in the fourth minute on a counterattack that knifed its way through the Wolverine defense. The goal would be the lone shot for the Hornets in the first half, and would be the only shot for Sac State until the 48th minute.
Utah Valley leveled the scoring in the 35th minute on a scintillating strike by Emojong. After Gilles Aurelien's shot was blocked and the referee waved off appeals for a hand ball, Emojong sent a left-footed curler into the top-right corner of the net from about 25 yards out.
The Wolverines dominated the offensive pressure in the first half, but had just the one goal to show for it. Utah Valley outshot the Hornets 9-1 in the first half and 15-4 overall.
After a stalemate for much of the second half, Utah Valley broke through in the 80th minute on Willey's goal. Odeh sent a cross into the penalty area that clipped off of Diouf's head to the back post, where Willey was able to tap it in from close range.
Barely 90 seconds later, Yehya doubled the lead with a breathtaking run down the left flank that left his defenders in the dust. Yehya blasted a right-footed shot into the roof of the net from just outside the six-yard box to ice the game at 3-1.
Utah Valley will make the short trip west to UC Davis for the next match on Sunday. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. MT, and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
