Wildcats Advance Past Idaho In Opening Round

Once November rolls around, the stipulation is simple. You must survive by advancing - against the Idaho Vandals the Weber State Wildcats did just that.

After heading into the weekend before last with an opportunity to win the Big Sky regular season and then dropping both games, the team was left with a sour taste in their mouth. But there was always a bright side, and that was the fact that they had qualified for the tournament. Last week, the Wildcats learned that their opponent in the opening round would be Idaho; a team that'd previously faced under the lights of the Wildcat Soccer Field and beat 2-1 in overtime by way of a Taylor Slack golden goal. This time, things weren't so close.

Second-year head coach Craig Sanders believes that while his team executed well, a big reason why this game looked so differently is that his squad has simply just improved.

"I think we just got better as a team, we play a certain way and it takes a little time for the players to get an understanding of what is required", Sanders continued, "Today was a good example of everyone being disciplined and playing into the system. We've seen a maturity in the players and their development and we've got better and better".

When the game kicked off, WSU positioned themselves in the driver's seat with a high level of intensity on defense and a calm, precise approach on offense. So when Amy Kenney sent a pass over to Lily Webster who used her speed to get into a comfortable spot and rifled a shot past the Vandal 'keeper in the eighth minute, it wasn't much of a surprise but more so a matter of time.

The Wildcats weren't only great in the opening minutes, they were great for all 90 of them. In total, WSU fired off 25 shots while the Vandals were only to send 4 towards Kaytlin Bradley who didn't record a save due to not one of those shots being on goal.

Of those three shots that the Wildcats saw meet the back of the net, none were a bigger relief than the one headed in by Rachel Twede off an assist from Yira Yoggerst. Twede's score gave WSU a 2-0 lead which could've acted as insurance if Idaho was able to find a goal. Instead, the goal was a cushion that would eventually grow even more comfortable for WSU once Sadie Newsom scored on a penalty kick to give them a 3-0 lead in the 88th minute of the match.

The three goals scored marks a continuance of offensive excellence that's been on display since that first victory over Idaho when they opened conference play. The last time they haven't scored in a match was back Sep. 19 when they came up short against Oklahoma State and while their defense has been great throughout the year, it's been the emergence of their offense that's allowed them to be put together these complete showings as they sit just a win away from playing for in the Big Sky title game.

But to get to that point, they first must dispel of the Big Sky regular-season champion Northern Colorado Bears whom they met on Oct. 24 but were downed 4-3. It was arguably the conference's match of the year and now after playing in a game that decided tournament seeding, they'll play for a spot in the title game.

"They are a great team and they have some great players. I don't think we had our best game that day (in their last meeting), it was a 4-3 result and we played well but I don't think it was our best. Hopefully, when we play on Friday both teams come out and play their best; I think it'll be a very, very good game".

The Wildcats clash with the Bears will be on Friday, Nov. 3 at 2 P.M. in Greeley, CO and will be streamed, as always, on ESPN+.

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Team Stats

Sadie Newsom

Lily Blum

Rachel Twede

Yira Yoggerst

Players Mentioned

Lily Blum

Kaytlin Bradley

Amy Kenney

Sadie Newsom

Taylor Slack

Rachel Twede

Yira Yoggerst

Players Mentioned

Lily Blum

Kaytlin Bradley

Amy Kenney

Sadie Newsom

Taylor Slack

Rachel Twede

Yira Yoggerst

Weber State University Athletics