Utah State soccer battles Air Force to scoreless draw Sunday

USU Women's Soccer played Air Force on Sunday, October 8 in Logan, Utah. The Aggies and Falcons tied 0-0 in double overtime. (Matt Halton)

LOGAN, Utah – In what would be the second-consecutive double-overtime match for both teams, Utah State and Air Force fought to a 0-0 draw in Logan Sunday.

With the tie, Utah State now sits at 6-5-3 on the year with a 1-3-2 Mountain West record. Air Force moves to 6-4-3 overall and 3-0-3 in league play.

Sunday’s match was the first time the Aggies have ended a contest in a scoreless draw since the 2013 season. Additionally, this was the fourth overtime match between Utah State and Air Force in the eight-match series between the two teams. The Aggies and Falcons also played extra time in the 2016 match at the Air Force Academy.

The Aggies fired off a season-high 18 shots in Sunday’s match, including a season-best 11 shots on goal. The Falcons finished the match with nine shots, six of which were on goal. Senior forward Wesley Hamblin and freshman midfielder Ashley Cardozo led the team with six shots apiece, shooting three and five shots on goal, respectively.

Three Utah State players were on the field for the full 110 minutes Sunday, as senior goalkeeper Sara Cobb, freshman defender Kami Warner and freshman midfielder Amber Marshall played the entire match. Additionally, junior midfielder Emma Clark and freshman defender Ashley Hughes each made the first start of their careers in Sunday’s contest.

The match started out fairly even, with both teams trading possession and shots. The Falcons out-shot the Aggies by one in the first half, but both were able to create solid opportunities. In the second half, Utah State came out in a dominating fashion, controlling possession and taking 10 shots to Air Force’s one. The Aggies looked to capitalize on setpieces, earning 11 corner kicks in the match, but were unable to do so.

The Air Force offense came out strong again in the first overtime period, keeping possession in its attacking third for the majority of the minutes. In that 10-minute stretch, the Falcons almost matched their shot total for the day, while tripling their shots on goal. The pace slowed in the second overtime stretch, with the Aggies taking the only two shots of the period. Utah State earned two final corner kicks in the last minute of play, but neither were able to find the net.

Utah State returns to the road next weekend, taking on Wyoming and Colorado State. The Aggies will battle the Cowgirls on Friday, Oct. 13, at 3 p.m. The team will then travel to Fort Collins to face the Rams on Sunday, Oct. 15, at 1 p.m.

Fans can follow Utah State soccer on Twitter, @USUSoccer, on Instagram, @USUSoccer, as well as on Facebook, at /USUSoccer. Aggie fans can also follow Utah State Athletics on Twitter, @USUAthletics, on Instagram, @USUAthletics and on Facebook at /USUAthletics.

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