Wildcats Take Down Sacramento State 3-0

Heading into Friday afternoons match, four wins are what sat between the Weber State Wildcats and at least a share of the Big Sky regular-season title.

When the dust settled, that magic number turned to three.

The last time the Wildcats took their home field they had thrashed Idaho State to a point that the scoreboard read 3-0 after the match concluded. This time, the foe was Sacramento State, and despite them being a different team that wears a different color, that 3-0 score once again sat upon the scoreboard as time expired.

"We weathered the storm, I mean they (Sac State) played fantastic until we got that first goal and then started to build off that. I thought we did well as a team, we got close to how we like to play and got stronger throughout the game" said Wildcat Head Coach Craig Sanders.

Shortly after the game kicked off, the Wildcats found themselves trying to snap out of their dunk as Sac State controlled a ton of the action due to sloppy passes from the 'Cats and indecisiveness but eventually they began to settle down and as that happened, Andelin Baldwin - who was fresh into the game, found the back of the net after a pretty pass from Hailey Price on a free-kick in the 24th minute.

Not only did the goal gift WSU the 1-0 lead but it also teetered momentum in favor of the Wildcats who were in control from that point on. The 'Cats began to dominate the possession battle and as the second half began to wind down, they erupted in celebration for the second time of the afternoon after Rachel Twede headed a ball to Alexis Simpson who reacted to it quicker than the Hornets goalkeeper and pushed the lead to 2-0.

The score was pivotal but also familiar. It was the first goal and assist of the year for Simpson and Twede which also was the case for Baldwin and Price.

As the 'Cats went into the break with a 2-0 lead, it felt as if all they had to do was keep the game under control and MekellMoss played a big part in that as she pitched a shutout and finished with two saves.

In the second half, the Wildcats continued their aggressiveness on the offensive end and they were rewarded for it in the 65th minute when Morgan Furmaniak assisted Taylor Slack. While Furmaniak certainly won't complain, her assist to Slack means that she is no longer the team's leading goal scorer as they are each now tied at 5-apiece.

After their final score of the night, the Wildcats looked poised enough to tack on another goal but it never came around; when the final horn rang, Weber State walked off the field with a 3-0 win over the Sacramento Hornets which keeps the 'Cats in the hunt for that coveted conference crown.

Next up, (8-6, 5-1) WSU will battle with the Portland State Vikings on Sunday at 1 P.M. which is Senior Day as it marks the home finale for the 'Cats who haven't lost a game at home to a Big Sky foe this season.

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Team Stats

Andelin Binford

Alexis Simpson

Taylor Slack

Morgan Furmaniak

Players Mentioned

Andelin Binford

Morgan Furmaniak

Hailey Price

Alexis Simpson

Taylor Slack

Rachel Twede

Players Mentioned

Andelin Binford

Morgan Furmaniak

Hailey Price

Alexis Simpson

Taylor Slack

Rachel Twede

Weber State University Athletics