Utah Soccer Squares Off with UVU and UC Irvine

Game Notes

Utah at Utah Valley
Date: Friday, Sept. 16
Location: Orem, Utah
Kickoff: 7 p.m. MT

Utah vs. UC Irvine
Date: Sunday, Sept. 18
Location: Ute Field
Kickoff: 1 p.m. MT

This Weekend
Utah (4-2-0) completes a three-game road swing on Friday with a trip down to Orem to play Utah Valley (4-3-0) at 7 p.m. The Utes then return home for a matchup with UC Irvine (7-1-0) on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Last Time Out
The Utes got goals from Hailey Skolmoski, Max Flom and Cabria Turang in a comeback win at North Dakota State on Sunday. NDSU opened the scoring after just two minutes but Skolmoski equalized around the 15-minute mark, her fifth of the season.

In the second half, Flom added her first goal of the season and Turang capped it off with her first goal as a Ute. It was a stressful road trip for the Utes as they played 60 minutes at Purdue on Friday before thunderstorms and a tornado warning halted play.

Skolmoski Named Pac-12 Player of Week
Utah's Hailey Skolmoski was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week on Aug. 30. The sophomore netted twice in the Ute wins over San Diego and then once more in a victory at Utah State

This was the first weekly honor for Skolmoski and she became Utah's first Offensive Player of the Week in program history. This was Utah's 10th Pac-12 weekly honor since joining the conference.

Skolmoski leads the Pac-12 with 12 points and has scored five goals in six contests, good for second in conference. That total is also the highest mark for a Utah player since Erin Dailey scored seven goals in 2011.

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 has six players with multiple assists this season, more than any other Pac-12 team. Skolmoski, Cabria Turang and newcomers Aleea Gwerder and Holly Daugirda join Katie Rogers and Taylor Slattery, the two Utes with the most career assists on the current roster.

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. Slattery had a double-digit point output as a freshman and gained a starting spot last season, with 13 contests up front.

Turang has already graduated with a degree in Human Development and Family Studies with a minor in Disability Studies and Gwerder led Washington Premier to a U18 Rainier Challenge championship. Daugirda 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

Freshmen Leading From the Back
With Gwerder and Daugirda on the outside, two other freshmen, Tavia Leachman and Natalee Wells have helped this team's transformation by creating a solid center back pairing.

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.

Junior Janie Kearl who started last season primarily in the midfield has moved back into that spot after serving as outside back for a few contests. A former First Team All-State selection, she helped lead East HS to a pair of regional championships.

How I Spent My Summer
Utah Soccer traveled to Germany for three matches during a 10-day stretch in mid-May.

"It was an amazing trip because we got to go to a different country and experience things as a team," senior Katie Rogers stated. "We already had tight unit off the field and that translated to our play this spring. This experience only improved our team's chemistry."

The Utes traveled to a number of cities including Frankfurt, Munich and Augsburg while also making a jaunt into the Alps. Utah played matches against SC Opel 06 Ru¨sselheim, MTV Dießen and FC Staad.

"This trip was an incredible opportunity for our players and staff," head coach Rich Manning said. "We played quality teams and watched some top-level matches that involved the best European soccer has to offer."

The group took in a Bundesliga match between FC Augsburg and Hamburger SV, visited a TSV Hoffenheim practice at its training ground and took a tour of the Allianz Arena, home of German champion Bayern Munich.

Talent in Utah's New Class
The Utes brought in 11 newcomers this season and all of them were successful in high school and at the club level. In addition to those already mentioned, the Utes boast Haylee Cacciacarne, the Deseret News' Ms. Soccer 2015, Ireland Dunn, the 2015 Deseret News 5A Most Valuable Player and Carly Nelson, a two-time First Team All-State goalkeeper.

Ella Ballstaedt scored 40 goals during her high school career, Kristin Fairbairn spent three years with the BC Provincial Team at the National training Center, Isabel Jones was a two-time Deseret News All-State performer, and Natalie Kump was First Team All-Area, All-League, All-State, League MVP and Offensive Player of the Year at Elko HS in Nevada

Series History
Utah is a perfect 6-0-0 against Utah Valley, but has only visited Orem once, coming away with a 6-0 win during the 2007 season. Utah has out-scored UVU 24-1 during the six contests with the last Wolverine goal occurring in 2004. The Utes have never lost to a current member of the Western Athletic Conference

This is the first meeting between Utah and UC Irvine as the Utes feature four players from the state of California. Utah is 14-5-5 all-time against teams from the Big West Conference, including a 7-2-3 mark at Ute Field. Utah did lose to Cal State Fullerton in SLC last season, 3-1.

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Players Mentioned

Ella Ballstaedt

Haylee Cacciacarne

Holly Daugirda

Ireland Dunn

Kristin Fairbairn

Max Flom

Aleea Gwerder

Isabel Jones

Janie Kearl

Natalie Kump

Tavia Leachman

Carly Nelson

Katie Rogers

Hailey Skolmoski

Taylor Slattery

Cabria Turang

Natalee Wells

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