NEWARK, N.J. — It was quite the second half for junior Katey Turner, as she scored two goals and assisted on two others to carry Utah Valley past Delaware State, 6-1, in the quarterfinals of the 2009 Great West Conference Women's Soccer Tournament on Friday.
The Wolverines (7-10-1) will now face Howard in the semifinals today at 5 p.m. (MT). The Bison defeated South Dakota, 2-0, in the first game of the day.
Jaime Lyons also scored two goals and got credit for the game-winner, giving her a team-high eight goals and 16 points on the season. It was the second consecutive two-goal outing for Turner, who now has five on the year.
"That's the Katey Turner that we know and we expect, and I think she'll bring that out there tomorrow as well," said UVU head coach Brent Anderson.
The game was tight for much of the first half. Nicole Archibald scored the first goal of the game when she bent a corner kick into the goal in the 16th minute. That was answered 10 minutes later by the Hornets' (1-15-2) Allison Schrang when she scored on a cross from Ashlee Gourdine.
Lyons netted her first goal of the game in the 32nd minute when she got around Hornet keeper Courtney Haas and was free right in front of the net, putting UVU up 2-1 at the break.
"Delaware State came out with good energy and put us under pressure and we didn't handle that early on, we kind of panicked," Anderson said. "In the second half, we started connecting on our passes and that really opened things up. It's good to get the first win, and hopefully the girls will keep their intensity."
The score remained 2-1 for the Wolverines for 21 minutes in the second half before Turner's first goal, on an Archibald assist in the 67th minute, opened the flood gates.
Five minutes later, Kelly Vide made it 4-1 when she fired a shot into the net from the top of the box. Turner's second goal came in the 83rd minute on a cross from Kelsey Kimball before Lyons capped the scoring in the 87th minute.
The Wolverines had a season-high 30 shots, including 14 on goal, while Delaware State finished with seven shots, three on goal. UVU goalkeeper Tasha Bell played all 90 minutes and recorded two saves.
BOISE STATE 1, UTAH STATE 0: At Boise, Idaho, battling both the conditions and third-seeded Boise State, the second-seeded Utah State women's soccer team fell to the Broncos, 1-0, in the semifinals of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament on Friday. The Aggies were the second higher seed to fall as top-seeded San Jose State lost 2-1 in overtime.
With the loss, Utah State ends its season 10-9-2, which is its fourth straight 10-win season. Boise State improves to 12-6-4.
"It wasn't our finest day " USU head coach Heather Cairns said. "Boise State played a really good match. They possesed with a purpose and played a solid all-around match. We struggled to defend and to attack. We had no shots on goal or corner kicks until the second half. it wasn't one of our better matches."
After an afternoon of clouds and rain, the sun finally poked through as the match got under way. Boise State came out strong in the first half two shots in the first 10 minutes. The first half would end with the shots tied at six. Sophomore midfielder Allie Maduell led the Aggies with four shots in the first half, while senior defender Sydne Garner was the only Aggie with a shot on goal.
The Broncos challenged in the second half with four corner kicks and a direct kick within minutes of each other, but were not able to find the back of the net. Maureen Fitzgerald took a direct kick that USU's Molli Merrill punched away early in the second half.
Boise State finally broke through at 57:27 mark of the second half with a goal by Erica Parks off the assist from Maureen Fitzgerald. It was her team-leading eighth goal of the season. Despite a great effort from Merill, the Broncos took the 1-0 advantage.
The Aggies had several chances in the second half, led by Lauren Hansen's two second-half shots.
The Aggies had eight players play the full 90 minutes, including sophomore forward Shantel Flanary and defenders Garner, Lindsey Smart and Summer Tillotson.
This is the second straight season that the Aggies and the Broncos have met in the semifinals. Last season, Utah State defeated Boise State, 1-0, on a goal by forward Lauren Hansen. This season, it was the Broncos with the 1-0 victory.
"This is my seventh season, and when I started, we weren't qualifying for conference tournaments. We are at the point where we are thinking we can win; it is about execution now. The mentality of the program has changed. I look forward to watching us grow and for us to get the results."
The Aggies will say goodbye to three seniors who helped but Utah State soccer on the map in defenders Garner, Smart and Erin Salmon. Smart will end her career as the all-time USU leader in matches started (84) and assists (15).
DIXIE STATE 3, ACADEMY OF ART 0: At Phoenix, Ariz., the Dixie State College of Utah women's soccer team will be heading to its first NCAA Division II postseason tournament after clinching a share of the Pacific West Conference title and claiming the league's automatic qualifier on Thursday following a 3-0 win over Academy of Art.
The Red Storm is 12-1 (36 points) in PacWest action this year, while overall Dixie State has produced a 13-4 record that features a 9-1 mark in its last 10 outings.
After finishing second in 2007 and 2008 to BYU-Hawaii, Dixie State currently holds a three-point lead over the Seasiders and can clinch the crown outright with a win or draw vs. NDNU today. A loss or tie by BYU-Hawaii today vs. Hawai'i Pacific also would provide Dixie State with sole possession of the crown.
To earn a share of its third straight PacWest Championship, the Seasiders would need a Dixie State loss vs. NDNU while they knocked off the Sea Warriors.
Even if BYU-Hawaii and Dixie State end up tied in points, the Red Storm has clinched the PacWest automatic qualifier because of its 1-0 victory over BYU-Hawaii on Oct. 20. It was the lone meeting of the year between the two squads.