PORTLAND, Ore. — No. 12 BYU women's soccer defeated the University of Portland 3-0 on Wednesday evening at a rainy Merlo Field.

"It’s always great to come back to my hometown, and we knew this was going to be a big game”, said Jennifer Rockwood, BYU head coach. “Portland’s had a fantastic season so far, especially in the WCC. But, we felt like they hadn’t seen a team with our type of attacking energy, and we’re overwhelming to teams when we do that. We set the tone at the beginning, even though the first goal didn’t come until later.”

All three of the Cougars’ goals would come from BYU reserves. BYU is undefeated against Portland in West Coast Conference play all-time, with 11 total wins.

First half

The Cougars dominated possession in the attacking third for the majority of the first half. Olivia Smith kicked off the Cougars’ offensive efforts with a deep cross in the fourth minute, but Portland’s goalkeeper Bre Norris caught the ball above her head for a save. Shortly following, Mikayla Colohan got off her first shot of the game in the fifth minute and Norris made a diving save.

A shot by Cameron Tucker was sent towards the top-left part of the net, but was saved by Norris in the 12th minute. Tucker would go on to have five shots and two shots on goal, but none would find the back of the net.

BYU had seven shots to Portland’s one in the opening 16 minutes. 

Grace Johnson’s header hit the ground and then jumped over the crossbar in the 22nd minute.

A spark off the bench, Rachel McCarthy scored the first goal of the night, with assists by Brecken Mozingo and Colohan in the 32nd minute. It was McCarthy’s fourth goal of the year. 

Colohan looked to add a second goal to the BYU stat line with a free kick at 20 yards, but barely missed to the left of the goalpost in the 39th minute to keep the score at 1-0.

Second half

Sophomore Bella Folino started in the second half, and sent a skipping ball to the goal box for a marker to boost the lead to 2-0 off a cross from Kendell Petersen in the 54th minute. 

Folino would score another goal three minutes later at the 56:56 mark after an assist from Olivia Wade. Folino’s second goal marked nine goals on the season, and 23 for her BYU career.

“I think we made a statement tonight,” said Wade. “This game proved that goals can come from anybody on our team. That is what makes us super special. We don’t just have two, three or four set players that can score, it really can come from anybody. Even players off the bench.”

Portland had a couple chances to get on the scoreboard late in the second half, with a shot from Sarah Kowack toward the bottom center of the net, but Cassidy Smith snagged the save. Also, the Pilots had a free kick in the 87th minute, but missed wide to the right.

The Cougars will return home for senior night to host No. 16 Pepperdine on Saturday, Nov. 3 at 6 p.m. MDT. Twenty minutes prior to the game, the seniors will be honored on the pitch. The game will be available for streaming on byutv.org and the BYUTv app. It will also be broadcast on the BYU Sports Network/BYU Radio 107.9 FM/BYU Cougars App.

PORTLAND, Ore. — No. 12 BYU women's soccer will travel to Oregon on Wednesday, Nov. 3 to take on the University of Portland at Merlo Field.

Wednesday’s matchup is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PDT on the WCC Network. The game will also be carried live on the BYU Sports Network — BYU Radio 107.9 FM/BYU Cougars App.

IN THE RANKINGS. BYU is currently ranked No. 12 in this week's NCAA DI women's soccer poll. Additionally, BYU is ranked No. 19 in the Top Drawer Soccer college soccer national ranking.

LAST TIME ON THE FIELD. On Saturday, the Cougars fell to a West Coast Conference team for the first time this season, with a 1-0 loss against No. 25 Santa Clara in California. The Cougars have only beaten the Broncos one time on the road in program history. BYU is currently tied in first place with Santa Clara in the WCC standings, with both teams securing a 6-1 conference record so far this season. 

No. 12 BYU (11-4-1, 5-0-0 WCC) vs Portland (8-7-0, 4-3-0 WCC)

• Wednesday, Nov. 3 at 7:30 p.m. PDT at Merlo Field
• Streaming: WCC Network
• Radio: BYU Sports Network/BYU Cougars App/107.9 FM
• Radio play-by-play: Greg Wrubell

THE PILOTS. The Pilots are 8-7 on the season coming off a three-game winning streak. Most recently, Portland defeated Loyola Marymount University 1-0 on Oct. 30th with a game-winning goal from sophomore forward Nedya Sawan in the 64th minute. Two weeks ago, the Pilots defeated Santa Clara 2-0 at home to knock the Broncos off their undefeated WCC record. Portland's Sawan and goalkeeper Bre Norris both collected WCC Player of the Week honors for their performances against Santa Clara. The Portland Pilots have won the National Championship twice in program history (2002 and 2005), with two-time FIFA World Cup Winner Megan Rapinoe on the 2005 championship team.

COUGARS VS. PILOTS. Overall, the Cougars have beaten the Pilots 11 times. BYU is 11-4-0 all-time. The largest margin of victory between the two programs occurred last season when the Cougars won 4-0 on South Field, with goals by Bella Folino, Rachel McCarthy, Brecken Mozingo and Ashton Johnson.