No. 20 BYU wins third straight in 6-0 effort over San Diego

PROVO, Utah — No. 20 BYU women’s soccer dominated San Diego in a 6-0 victory at South Field on Saturday, notching the team’s third straight win. 

BYU now holds an overall record of 8-3-1 and remains undefeated in West Coast Conference play at 3-0.

“There is a lot on the line every single game, and we got off to a good start,” said Jennifer Rockwood, BYU head coach. “San Diego is a team that tries to play out of the back, just like we do. We didn’t look as sharp in the first half, but we played with more of a sense of urgency in the second half.”

The Cougars started off with heavy possession on San Diego’s side of the field.

In the 11th minute, BYU opened the scoring after an own goal that deflected into the net as the San Diego defender tried to clear the ball off of a Brecken Mozingo corner kick.

For the first time in the game, the Toreros entered BYU’s box in the 14th minute. Their possession was short-lived.

In the 18th minute, sophomore forward Bella Folino assisted senior forward Makaylie Moore as she scored to make it 2-0. It was her second goal of the season, bringing her collegiate goal tally to 11.

BYU would continue to fire shots at USD, racking up six consecutive shots. After 33 minutes, San Diego’s Aryssa Mahrt made the team’s first shot of the evening, going out to the right. Four minutes later, Mahrt made another attempt to the bottom center, but senior goalkeeper Cassidy Smith secured the save. 

In the last few minutes of the half, USD fired three more shots on Smith, but failed to close the gap. 

For the half, BYU dominated possession 65 percent of the time and outshot San Diego 20-5, firing seven shots on goal.

The Cougars started the second half no differently, firing off three shots in less than two minutes. 

In the 48th minute, a cross by Mozingo resulted in senior midfielder Mikayla Colohan deflecting in her first goal of the game as she snuck behind a San Diego defender, propelling BYU ahead to 3-0. This goal came on her ninth shot of the day.

Not letting up offensively, Colohan finished the game strong by earning BYU its fourth goal at the 78 minute mark. Her two consecutive goals bring her tally to 10 goals for the season and 45 in her collegiate career.

On a roll, BYU earned its fifth goal of the match in the 81st minute. Just three minutes after Colohan’s goal, freshman forward Addie Gardner celebrated her second collegiate goal, assisted by sophomore midfielder Rachel McCarthy.

Utilizing the final minutes of the game, the Cougars widened the gap to 6-0 after freshman forward Paola Garcia celebrated her first goal as a Cougar at the 85th minute mark. Both McCarthy and freshman midfielder Caroline Stringfellow assisted in the final goal.

“[Getting my first goal] was amazing,” Garcia said. “This whole past year has been a journey. I’ve just been grinding and putting everything into my training and it turned out well for me. Our team has really come together this season. I look up to the older girls and one day if I want to be there, I have to put the work in now.”

Up next, BYU will welcome Pacific to South Field on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. MDT. Tune into the Cougars’ matchup on the BYU Sports Network – BYU Radio 107.9 FM/BYU Cougars App, BYUtv.org and the BYUtv app.