The Southern Utah University soccer team earned its first Big Sky Conference win since returning to the conference. Southern Utah defeated Portland State University 1-0 at home in Cedar City, Utah, on Sunday, Oct. 4, at Thunderbird Soccer Field. Rylan Tebbs matched a hometown milestone, and the winning goal was scored by Ashlyn O’Malley.
The Thunderbirds improved to 1-1 in conference play and 4-6-1 overall. They’ve already surpassed their win total from last year with seven games left to play.
Portland State dropped to 2-9 overall and 0- 2 in conference play.
The teams have faced each other a total of 12 times, with Portland still holding a 6-4 advantage with two ties. This is the second time Southern Utah has defeated Portland after they won 3-2 last year.
Record matched
Rylan Tebbs matched the record for most games played by a Cedar City native with 41, tying Rachael Hunt. Tebbs will take sole ownership of this record in her next match.
The junior defender played all 90 minutes of the match, along with Ashlyn Woodbury, Dakota Hansen and freshman goalkeeper Tatum Trout.
Game-winning score
The Thunderbirds had eight shot attempts in the first half, with four of them being on target, but the game entered the half scoreless.
Out of the half, Southern Utah continued to strike at the goal. O’Malley put two shots on goal at 49:10 and 50:49, but just a couple of minutes later she found the back of the net to score the only goal of the game and her third of the season.
O’Malley finished with four total shots, with three on goal. Gracen Blieschke also had two shots on goal and four altogether. They combined for eight of the Thunderbirds’ 13 shots.
Defensive stops
Four of the five saves Trout made took place in the second half, keeping the Vikings out of the net. Three of her stops came in the game’s final moments, at 86:08, 87:41 and 89:44.
SUU finished with eight total on-goal shots compared to Portland’s six. The Thunderbirds also earned eight corner kicks, while the Vikings only had three.
What’s next
Southern Utah will travel to face Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho, on Thursday, Oct. 8. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be livestreamed on ESPN+.
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Author: Andrew Streeter
Photo by SUU Athletics
Editor: Payson Davis
