When the NCAA Women’s Soccer Championship bracket was revealed Monday, one matchup caught the attention of soccer fans across the state of Utah.
While the BYU Cougars were named one of the four No. 1 seeds in the tournament, a familiar team was announced as their opponent.
The recently crowned Mountain West champion Utah State Aggies would be traveling to Provo for a first-round showdown, setting up an intriguing match between two in-state rivals.
Before the match kicks off Friday night, here is a preview of the Cougars vs. Aggies battle.
Teams at a glance
BYU Cougars
The Cougars had no issues adjusting to the Big 12 in the sport of women’s soccer this season, finishing as the runner-up in both the regular season and tournament.
BYU currently spots a 16-2-3 record this campaign, including a 7-0-3 mark in the Big 12.
The Cougars also spent time at No. 1 in the national rankings for the first time this season, eventually collecting one of the four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.
BYU is making its sixth straight appearance in the national tournament, where they most recently reached the Sweet 16 in 2022 and made their first NCAA title game appearance the season prior.
The top scoring offense in the country, the Cougars have tallied 69 goals in 2023.
๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ #๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐!! pic.twitter.com/pKfdombOt6
— BYU Women's Soccer (@byusoccer_w) November 6, 2023
Utah State Aggies
Led by third year head coach Manny Martins, the Aggies took home the Mountain West Tournament title for the first time last Saturday afternoon with a 1-0 win against Colorado State.
AGGIES SCOREโผ๏ธโฝ๏ธ๐ฎ@USUsoccer takes a 1-0 lead in the 78th minute of the #MWWSOC Championship ๐
๐บ: https://t.co/jBE4GSu3sT
๐ฅ๏ธ: https://t.co/MwyP5xcTWW pic.twitter.com/lQTw2FFATL— Mountain West (@MW_OlySports) November 4, 2023
USU is currently 14-7-1 on the season, including a runner-up regular season finish in the Mountain West with a 9-2 mark.
The Aggies enter the tournament in their best form of the campaign, having won the last seven matches. Defense has led the way during the streak, allowing just one goal and notching six shutouts during the run.
Utah State is making its first NCAA Tournament since 2012, when they won both the WAC regular season and tournament titles before falling 2-1 to BYU in the first round. Overall, this is the third appearance in the national tournament in program history.
The moment it became official #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/Zgztkyp57j
— USU Soccer (@USUsoccer) November 6, 2023
A 2023 season rematch
As in-state opponents, the two programs have faced off on numerous occasions in seasons past.
BYU and USU have even played previously this season back on September 16 in Logan.
Ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time, the Cougars were upset by the Aggies 1-0 courtesy of a goal from Summer Diamonds and a shutdown defensive effort by USU.
GOALLLLLLLL!!!
Summer Diamond getting the party started here at the Bell! pic.twitter.com/yAPp3SuonZ
— USU Soccer (@USUsoccer) September 16, 2023
All-time history
Utah State and BYU have a long history as rivals, having met 16 times on the pitch since 1996.
The series has historically been dominated by the Cougars, who won the first 13 games against the Cache Valley school.
Since Manny Martins took over the Aggie program, however, momentum has shifted in favor of USU.
The Aggies have notched two wins and a draw in their last three matchups with BYU, recording a 1-1 draw in 2022 and a 2-1 overtime victory in 2021 along with this season’s upset win.
Women’s soccer: Utah State, BYU to face off in NCAA Tournament
Top players to watch
BYU Cougars
The Cougars have several notable players who can make an impact as they look to make a deep NCAA Tournament run.
Four BYU players were recently named to the Big 12 All-Tournament Team, while the Cougars also racked up eight total honors on the All-Big 12 teams.
Perhaps the most potent weapon for the explosive BYU offense, senior midfielder/forward Brecken Mozingo stands out as the player to watch for the Cougars.
Mozingo has tallied 11 goals and 12 assists during the season on the way to being named to the Big 12 All-Tournament Team and a member of the All-Big 12 First Team.
If BYU is to avenge the last loss to USU, expect Mozingo to be involved in breaking down the Aggies’ standout backline.
Utah State Aggies
While BYU’s squad may be more recognized on a national scale, Utah State has multiple players who can make a difference against the Cougars.
Four Aggies recently received All-Mountain West Tournament Team honors, highlighted by senior midfielder Whitney Lopez taking home MVP honors. USU was also recognized with six total honors on the All-MW teams.
Utah State will need a goal to win the match against the Cougars, but even more importantly, they will need to stop the highest-scoring offense in the country to have a chance at upsetting BYU again.
Enter the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year Kelsey Kaufusi, who is the player to watch on the Aggie side. Kaufusi will need to keep the defense organized and win a multitude of 1-on-1 battles if USU is to have any shot of upsetting the Cougars on their home field.
USU soccer defeats Colorado State, wins Mountain West Tournament championship
Prediction
This first round matchup is similar in many ways to what we saw last season in the state of Utah.
In 2022 it was BYU hosting WAC champion Utah Valley in a first-round match, and it was the Wolverines that had pulled off an upset win over the Cougars earlier in the schedule.
While there was a lot of hype for the rematch, BYU easily dispatched UVU on its way to the NCAA Sweet 16.
I expect the Cougars to prevail Friday night in front of a sellout crowd at South Field in this rematch against the Aggies, but I expect a much closer scoreline in a battle between bitter rivals.
BYU 2, Utah State 1
Will the Cougars or Aggies come out on top in the first round of the NCAA Tournament?
