After finishing the regular season with a victory and a draw, the University of Utah Women’s Soccer team (8-6-5, 5-3-3 Big 12) made their Big 12 tournament debut. The team hit the road and traveled east to Kansas City, Missouri for the occasion. In their first-round match-up, the Utes faced off against the Colorado Buffaloes.
The match was the second consecutive game between these two teams, as they finished regular season play with a draw against each other. Just five days later, they met once again to battle, this time for the privilege of advancing to the next round.
The Utes opened up the match with an early attack. Just over 40 seconds in, Utah’s Katie O’Kane attempted the game’s first shot from long-range. The shot, which was counted as a shot-on-goal, was quickly put away by the Buffaloes’ goaltender.
Utah’s offense put up two more shots in the first five minutes, then quieted down. Kasey Wardle made two crucial saves in the 11th and 17th minutes, respectively, keeping the game scoreless.
23 minutes into the half, the Utes found themselves with an excellent opportunity to get on the board. O’Kane set-up Bella Woods in prime scoring position with a cross-pass. From there, Woods converted her shot for the first goal of the game, moving the Utes ahead.
With the lead now in their possession, the Utes looked to prevent any Buffalo attempt to get on the board and protect their newfound advantage. Playing well, the Utes only allowed a single shot in the remainder of the half.
Both teams headed to the locker-rooms as the game hit halftime, with Utah maintaining their one-goal lead. Going into the second half, the Buffaloes were desperate to find the equalizer. Just over a minute into the period, Colorado’s Shyra James completed a shot-on-goal attempt, but it was foiled by Wardle.
From there, the Utes took control of the offensive momentum of the match. Putting up six straight unanswered shots, Utah looked prime to expand their lead to two. Despite their best efforts, though, this was not the case. In a game-changing moment, Colorado’s Hope Leyba netted the Buffaloes’ first goal of the match, knotting the score, 1-1.
In just two minutes following the 72nd minute, two Utes earned yellow cards, which were the only cards awarded in the match. Looking to once again break the tie, Utah’s Taliana Kaufusi found herself with excellent opportunities back-to-back. Despite the promising situations, her first shot was blocked by a Colorado defender and the second rang off the crossbar.
Then, with less than five minutes remaining in the match, Colorado’s Ava Priest found the back of the net on a shot from outside of the box. With the crucial late goal, the Buffaloes took the 2-1 lead, their first of the game. The Colorado score put extensive pressure on the Utes, as they looked for a late scoring opportunity.
Despite their wishes, the Utes never found said chance. The final seconds ticked off the clock, resulting in a 2-1 Buffalo victory. With the tournament loss, the Utes’ season comes to an end. Utah had 16 shots in the match, along with five saves and ten fouls.
With the conclusion of the Utes’ tournament, the team finished the season with a winning record of 8-6-5. Furthermore, the team posted a 5-3-3 conference record in their first year of Big 12 play. The Utes will return to the pitch in the Fall of 2025, as they will look to further improve in their second year as a Big 12 member.
