Provo, UT -- All-American Aleisha Cramer's goal and assist led BYU to a 3-0 shutout over the University of Utah as the Cougars clinch the MWC's regular season women's soccer title with a 5-1 record, Saturday.

Cramer's scored her ninth goal of the season on a direct kick from forty yards out with just three minutes left in the game to seal the 3-0 shutout for BYU.

The Utes end their season with a 10-6-0, 3-3-0 record. Both teams head to Las Vegas next week for the MWC Championships with BYU getting the top seed and a first round bye in the tournament.

Freshman Kim Devine got the Cougars on the board in the 29th minute of the first half with a powerful kick into the far right post after receiving a cross shot from Jeni Willardson Viernes and Lydia Ojuka.

In the second half of action it was Ojuka's header at the 59 minute mark that gave BYU a comfortable 2-0 lead. Teammates Viernes and Aleisha Cramer were credited with assist.

"We wanted to try and play our style of possession, using our wings and moving the ball from side to side, and I thought we did that very well, especially in the second half," said BYU head coach Jennifer Rockwood.

"This was a total team performance tonight and I thought Kim Devine and Lydia Ojuka had their best games of the season," added coach Rockwood.

BYU outshot Utah 23 to eight in the game. This was the ninth shutout of the season for the Cougars and their fifth at home. The record 1,612 soccer fans in attendance was this year's highest at South Field.

The Cougars travel to Las Vegas on Tuesday for the MWC championships where the team hopes to clinch its third consecutive tournament crown. BYU will play its first tournament game Thursday at 4:30 p.m.

-agate- BYU-3; Utah-0

Scoring: BYU-Kim Devine, 29:49 (Lydia Ojuka, Jeni W. Viernes, assists)

BYU-Lydia Ojuka, 59:02 (Viernes, Aleisha Cramer, assists)

BYU-Aleisha Cramer, 87:14 (unassisted)

Shots: BYU-23; Utah-8

Saves: BYU-Kylee Dickson (3); Utah-Lynnsey Asay (9)

The Cougar women's soccer team stepped it up this week notching two wins in three days to give them sole possession of first place in the MWC women's soccer standings. This week it's one more game, against instate rival and conference foe Utah that stands in the way of BYU clinching a third consecutive regular season title. The Utes and Cougars meet on Sat. Nov. 3 in a 5 p.m. kcick off from South Field.

BYU vs Utah Game On Television/Satellite

Saturday evenings game between the Cougars and Utes will air live locally on KBYU-TV, Chan. 11 and live on BYU-TV on the Dish Network 500 System, Direct TV, and on other local cable channels. Kim Free will call the action and former BYU player Natalyn Lewis will provide the analysis.

MWC Standings As Of 10/29/01

TEAM CONFERENCE GS ALL GS

BYU 4-1-0 10-6-1

Utah 3-2-0 9-5-0

UNLV 3-2-0 9-5-2

New Mexico 3-2-1 4-10-2

Air Force 2-3-0 7-9-1

San Diego State 1-3-1 5-10-1

Wyoming 0-3-2 2-10-3

Last Week Recap

The BYU team got back on thw inning column with shutout victories over conference foes Air Force and Wyoming. In the 13 goals there were at least nine players with goals. With the two wins the Cougars are in sole possession of first place in the MWC standings with a 4-1-0 record. Utah and UNLV are tied for second place with 3-2-0 records.

Cougars Fall Out Of National Polls For Second Straight Week

Although the team is out of the polls, they did get votes in this week's SoccerTimes Top 25 Coaches Poll

Hermann Watch And MAC Collegiate Soccer Award Nominee

All American Aleisha Cramer is also one of 13 college players to be nominated for the Hermann Trophy. She's the lone sophomore nominated.

She was just made a finalist for the prestigious Missouri Athletic Club men's and women's Collegiate Soccer Players of the Year awards. The M.A.C. award is the official National Soccer Coaches Association of America/adidas award for Division I players.

Returning Starters To Watch

• 17 Aleisha Cramer - MF, So (8G, 6A, 22PTS, 55SH)

• 11 Sarah Higham Yee - MF, Sr (4G, 2A, 10PTS, 29SH)

• 18 Jeni Willardson Viernes - MF, Jr (7G, 4A, 18PTS, 50SH)

Newcomers To Watch

• 15 Kim Devine - 5-5 F/Fr, Laguna Niguel, CA (Has started in all but one game, 8G, 3A, 19PTS, 41SH).

• 9 Krissa Campbell - MF/F, Fr, Folsom, CA (Played in all games, 1G, 2PTS, 11SH)

• 2 Kimmie Davis - MF/F, Fr, Torrance, CA (Played in all games, starting in one, 2G, 4A, 8PTS, 7SH)

Cougar '01 Quickie Stats

• Averaging 18.82 shots on goal per game

• Averaging 2.35 goals per game

• Average 2.06 assists per game

• Average 6.76 points per game

BYU Picked To Win MWC Crown

The MWC Coaches picked BYU to win its third consecutive title. The Cougars received five first-place votes and collected a total of 36 points to capture the top spot in the poll.

BYU won the 2000 regular-season MWC crown with a perfect 6-0 league record and captured the conference tournament title with a 6-1 victory over Utah.

Cougar Notes

The BYU women's soccer team moved into first place in this week's MWC standings after easily defeating Air Force and Wyoming. The Cougars currently have a 4-1-0 record in the MWC with just one game remaining. All-American Aleisha Cramer picked up three goals and two assists during the weekend to put her in first place in scoring with 22 points from eight goals and six assists. Freshman Kim Devine is second with eight goals and three assists for her 19 points. Returning starter Jeni Willardson Viernes a junior midfielder is in third place with seven goals and four assists for her 18 points.

Injury Report

Returning defender Farrah Hofheins is out for the season due to a torn ACL suffered in practice at the start of the season. Sophomore defender Britney Holman has not played in any games since breaking her ankle in the UNLV game on Oct. 11. She may see some playing time this Saturday, but is on a day to day basis.

Utah Notes

The University of Utah comes to South Field with a 9-5-0, 3-2-0 record and a second place standing in the conference. They won their last two home games against Wyoming and Air Force. Senior Amy Kofoed leads the team in scoring with nine goals and six assists for 24 points. Four other Ute players are in double digit points including Shauna Gurr Bingham with 18 points, Bobbie Benegas with 14, Katie Tate with 13 and finally Missy Dennis with 10 points from five goals. Koford also leads the team in the assists category with six. The University of Utah is averaging 15,4 shots, and 2.7 goals a game.

Series Record: 9-0 favoring BYU. During last season the Utes and Cougars met twice with BYU winning both times, a 5-2 victory in Salt Lake City and a 6-1 win in the MWC Tournament in Las Vegas.

The Rockwood File

Jennifer Rockwood begins her seventh season at the helm of BYU's women's soccer program. In six years she has guided her team to three conference championships and four straight appearances in the NCAA Championships beginning with the 1997 season. The Cougars have had two "Sweet Sixteen" finishes in 1998 and in 2000. Her many honors include two Coach of the Year honors, by the WAC in 1996 and in 2000 by the MWC.

Last season, she became the first MWC coach to eclipse the 100-win total on Sept. 23 with a 2-0 victory over Milwaukee-Wisconsin. Entering the 2001 season coach Rockwood ranked fifth among active coaches by winning percentage. She has averaged 18.6 wins per season over the past five years, which ranks second behind only Anson Dorrance of North Carolina for wins per season. Dorrance has won an average of 22.2 matches per season.

Rockwood has also coached in the Utah ODP , the youth club's and high school levels.

Rockwood's Record (13 Years at BYU, 7 with club team)

Division I/years: 122-32-3/6 (.777)

1995 Record: 11-8-1

1996 Record: 22-1-0

1997 Record: 19-4-0

1998 Record: 20-5-0

1999 Record: 21-4-0

2000 Record: 19-4-1

2001 Record: 10-6-1, 4-1-0

Rockwood Quotes

On Cougars: This is our last regular season home game of the seasson and as always the matchup between us and Utah is a good one. It's a game that's played with a lot of emotion, the players know each other and everyone wants to play their best. And it's a fun game to watch. We have a lot riding on the game because it gives us an opportunity to solidify first place in the conference and get a first round bye. I'm glad we have a week to prepare because it will be a real battle and we're hoping for a lot of fan support to watch a realy fun game.

On Utah: They are having a great season this year and have a lot riding on this game as well. It's a big rivalry between us and both teams will come out ready to battle.

BYU Media Information For Home Games

At home, the Cougars practice daily from 2:15 to 5 p.m. Player and/or coach Rockwood interviews may be done in advance by contacting Norma Collett at 801-378-4908 or via e-mail at norma_collett@byu.edu

There are no player interviews 24 hours prior to games. The Cougars practice at Haws Field, just west of the Smith Fieldhouse.

Up Next For The Cougars

BYU will be in Las Vegas, Nevada from Tues., Nov.6 through Sat. Nov.10 competing in the 2001 MWC Women's Soccer Championships. The Cougars won the title last season.