Utah Soccer Set to Host Washington State

Utah vs. Washington State
Date: Friday, Oct. 14
Location: Ute Field
Kickoff: 7 p.m. MT
Power of Pink Night

This Weekend
Utah Soccer (9-2-2, 4-0-1) has a single game this weekend when it welcomes Washington State (6-6-1, 1-4-1) on Friday evening. The Utes and Cougars will kick-off at 7 p.m. with the annual Power of Pink match to be seen live on Pac-12 Plus for Twitter.

Utah Soccer Debuts on Pac-12 Plus
Utah Soccer will host its first event on Pac-12 Plus, a new platform designed to stream live events via Twitter, this Friday vs. WSU. You can catch the game live via the Utah Soccer account (@UtahWSoccer) or the Utah Athletics account (@utahathletics)

Over the next month, Pac-12 Plus will stream seven more events – four volleyball matches, another soccer contest, a swim meet and an ice hockey game.

The Pac-12's partnership with Twitter was announced in July and gives the conference a new platform to provide more exposure for each school. As the conference works through increasing operational efficiency, additional selections will be added to the event schedule.

Last Weekend
Utah continued the best start for the program since joining the Pac-12 with a pair of wins over Oregon State and Oregon. Hailey Skolmoski scored the winner in both games while Janie Kearl and Natalee Wells both earned assists for their first collegiate points. July Mathias also posted a pair of shutouts, giving her four on the season and the Utes eight in total.

Skolmoski Named Pac-12 Player of Week
Utah's Hailey Skolmoski has been named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season, the first Ute to ever achieve this honor on a pair of occasions.

She now has 10 goals on the season, which ranks 13th in the nation. That number also paces the Pac-12 along with her 22 points and six game-winning goals. All of those totals are the most for a Utah player since Adele Letro in 2007 (17 G, 39 P, 6 GWG)

Skolmoski was the 2014 Utah Gatorade Player of the Year after scoring a school record 28 goals at Riverton HS and winning a pair of regional titles.

Facilitating Feet
Utah is currently third in the league with 23 assists as Katie Rogers leads the way with four helpers, ninth among Pac-12 players.

Rogers, a three-time Pac-12 All-Academic selection, moved into a more defensive midfield role last season and started all but one contest for the Utes. She has started all but one contest over the last three seasons and is a three-time Pac-12 All-Academic honoree as well as a NSCAA Academic All-Region selection.

Freshmen Leading From the Back
Three freshmen, Aleea Gwerder, Tavia Leachman and Natalee Wells have helped this team's transformation by creating a solid defensive corps. Utah has only allowed eight goals in its 13 contests (0.60 GAA) with eight shutouts to its credit.

Leachman, a center back, led powerhouse Long Beach Poly to three-consecutive Moore League titles and has played all but 30 minutes this season. Wells was ranked as the no. 5 recruit in the state of Utah by MaxPreps and has moved back from a midfield role at the start of the season to serve as Leachman's partner in the middle.

Gwerder led Washington Premier to a U18 Rainier Challenge championship and is joined on the outside by Janie Kearl a junior who started last season primarily in the midfield. A former First Team All-State selection, she helped lead East HS to a pair of regional championships.

Another newcomer, Holly Daugirda, has also started at outside back for the Utes. She spent her summer in New Zealand where she suited up for the U.S. Under-19 Women's National Team. She was also named the 2015 Utah Gatorade Player of the Year

Goalkeeper Carly Nelson, a freshman from Lindon, was stepping up in goal with three shutouts to her credit. She ranks third in save percentage (.857) and fourth in goals-against average (0.56) despite missing the last four games with an injury. A Deseret News two-time First Team All-State goalkeeper she helped Timpanogos reach the 4A state title game three years in a row.

Series History
Utah is 6-5-1 all-time against Washington State, 3-3-0 in SLC, and has dropped two in a row against the Cougars. The Utes lost last season here at home, 1-0 and also in 2014, 4-2 as Natalie Vukic scored. The last Utah victory occurred in Pullman during the 2013 season. The Utes came away with a 4-3 double overtime victory as Taylor Sattery netted for the Utes.

Rising in the Rankings
For the first time this season, Utah is receiving votes in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Top 25. The Utes are currently ranked No. 20 by HeroSports.com and No. 22 by TopDrawerSoccer.com, Meanwhile, the team's RPI continues to climb, moving to No. 22 in the nation.

Utah Soccer Earns NSCAA Academic Award
The Utah women's soccer team earned a NSCAA Team Academic Award for the 2015-16 academic year. To qualify for the award, the team must have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 or higher for the entire academic year. Eleven Pac-12 teams qualified for the award with Utah placing fourth with a 3.43 team GPA. The Utes were third last season with a 3.41 team GPA.

Since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, Utah women's soccer has had 57 players earn academic honors from the conference, including 10 student-athletes last season. In order to earn All-Academic status, student-athletes must have a minimum of a 3.0 GPA and either be a starter or significant contributor. Last year's winners include the listed returnees below

Utah's Second Team honoree:
Janie Kearl, 3.81, Exercise and Sport Science

Utah's Honorable Mention honorees:
Mikayla Elmer, Business Administration
Katie Rogers, Exercise and Sport Science
Taylor Slattery, Human Development and Family Studies
Cabria Turang, Human Development and Family Studies
Natalie Vukic, Graphic Design

Season Ticket Scarves
Season tickets are $10 and come with a Utah Soccer Scarf. Your scarf serves as your season ticket and will get you admission to all home games. All seating is general admission. To get your 2016 season ticket scarf, visit http://utahtickets.com/soccer/#single-games or call 801-581-UTIX.

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Players Mentioned

Holly Daugirda

Mikayla Elmer

Aleea Gwerder

Janie Kearl

Tavia Leachman

July Mathias

Carly Nelson

Katie Rogers

Hailey Skolmoski

Taylor Slattery

Cabria Turang

Natalie Vukic

Natalee Wells

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