Utah Soccer to Face Southern Utah in Second Exhibition Match of 2024

Saturday, August 10

Salt Lake City, UT

7 p.m.

University of Utah

Southern Utah

Utah Soccer to Face Southern Utah in Second Exhibition Match of 2024

8/8/2024 2:00 PM | Soccer

Match Notes

Utes return to Ute field for final tune up before season opener

SALT LAKE CITY - The University of Utah women's soccer team is wrapping up pre-season with a final exhibition game against Southern Utah Thunderbirds on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Ute Field in Salt Lake City.

SATURDAY'S MATCHUP
Date | Time: Saturday, August 10 |7 p.m. (MT)
Utah (0-0-0) vs. Southern Utah (0-0-0) (Exhibition Match)
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah | Ute Field
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @UtahWSoccer

ABOUT THE MATCH
Saturday's contest will be divided into two 45-minute halves officiated by three referees.

2024 Utah Women's Soccer Roster
Coach Hideki Nakada has assembled a squad that consists of 13 returners and 12 newcomers. The list of players back in Utah Red include 2023 leading scorer Katie O'Kane and Taliana Kaufusi, who topped the team in goals in 2022. Brooklyn Blaylock and 2023 assists leader Kelly Bullock have also returned after starting all 20 matches a season ago, as has Kasey Wardle, who finished as one of the conference leaders in saves as a sophomore.

Among the many new Utes on Nakada's roster are true freshmen Callie Blaylock, Londyn Lovell, Mia Paugh, Siena Zunino, Katie Callaway and Bella Ganiere. The Utah staff also added six transfers, including sophomore Landen Matthews, junior Erin Gibbs, senior Devi Dudley and graduate students Grace Watkins, Rachel Bastone and Ava Hetzel.

2024 Schedule
Saturday's match against the Thunderbirds will be the last chance to cheer on the Utes before season opener against Gonzaga on Aug. 15. Utah's first travel of the season will find them at LSU on Sept. 5 in Baton Rouge. Utah's first Big 12 match will take place at Ute Field on Sept. 12, when they'll square off with the Arizona Wildcats.

Tickets
Season tickets for 2024 are currently on sale, with single-match tickets going on sale on Aug. 12. Tickets can be purchased by visiting utahtickets.com/soccer/. All ticket sales are cashless and all tickets are digital, including MUSS Tickets. Pre-purchasing tickets will allow fans to obtain the best price. Those on the Utah player pass list will have their tickets added to their account associated with the email provided by the student-athletes.

To ensure a successful experience with digital ticketing, fans are encouraged to download their tickets to the wallet on their smartphone for presentation upon arrival at the stadium gates to expedite the entry process. Ticket sales and customer service will be available at the ticket office near the main entrance.

New Conference, Same Utes
The 2024 campaign will be Utah's first as members of the Big 12, the fourth different conference the Utes have competed in since the program's inception as members of the WAC in 1995. Utah posted a 7-8-2 mark during that initial season, then went 13-7 in 1999 when they played in the Mountain West Conference for the first time. Their first foray into Pac-12 play was in 2011, when they finished 10-9-1.

The list of new league foes the Utes will have to contend with include a Texas Tech team that won the conference's regular season title, then reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament, as well as a BYU squad that reached the College Cup for the second time in three seasons. Utah will also be taking the field against Iowa State and Kansas State for the first time in program history.

About Southern Utah
Saturday's game will be the first time Utah will match up with Southern Utah since 2013. The Utes faced off with the Thunderbirds in Salt Lake on Sept. 8 and were victorious 6-2. Saturday will be the second matchup between these two Utah schools in program history.

SUU is led by coach Kai Edwards, who is entering his fifth season coaching the Thunderbirds. Edwards is aiming to dominate the WAC this season after losing in the first round to Seattle U in 2023. The 2024 team includes 28 players, nine of which are freshmen.

NCAA Appearances
The Utes are heading into 2024 aiming for their ninth NCAA Tournament berth and their first since 2019. Utah's best showing the national postseason occurred in 2016, when victories over Texas Tech and Florida State propelled them to the Sweet 16.

New Year, New Staff
In addition to the new faces on the field for the Utes, coach Hideki Nakada also added two new coaches to his staff.

Assistant coach Travis Smith officially came on board in January after three seasons at Kansas, where he helped the Jayhawks rack up 20 victories, including wins over squads ranked as high as No. 9 in the nation. Smith also spent time at Brandeis High School, where his pupils included three all-state and seven all-region selections. He helped the squad to a district title in 2018 and, two years later, the Broncos finished the season ranked at No. 9 in the state.

Fellow assistant Jackie Poortinga was hired in May after a busy last several years that included functioning as Phoenix Rising's Director of Goalkeeping, a position she's held since 2021. Her responsibilities there included overseeing the development of the organization's goalkeepers, developing and implementing the team's goalkeeper training curriculum and identifying talent for the purposes of improving the roster. She also functioned as an Assistant Goalkeeper Coach for the Phoenix Rising FC Men's USL Championship team.

Next Up
The Utes will debut their first Big 12 season by hosting the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Ute Field on Aug. 15, at 7 p.m. before welcoming Grand Canyon on Aug. 22.

FOLLOW THE UTES!
Fans can follow along on social media (Twitter: @UtahWSoccer | Instagram: @UtahWSoccer | Facebook: Facebook.com/Utahwsoccer).