Sept. 8, 2006

Box Score

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Utah State soccer suffered its third straight shutout loss, falling to former Big West foe No. 24 Long Beach State, 2-0, Friday night in the City By The Bay Classic, hosted by the University of San Francisco.

The 49ers netted a goal in the 40th minute by Yeraldy Hurtado and in the 67th minute by Hayley Bolt, as LBSU outshot USU, 17-4, including 7-4 in shots on goal. Utah State was denied a shot in the second half by the Long Beach State defense.

Utah State is now 2-3 on the young season, while Long Beach State improves to 4-1. The Aggies and 49ers were conference mates when Utah State was in the Big West from 1996-2004.

Aggie sophomore goalkeeper Ali Griffin made six saves on the night.

"Ali was phenemenal tonight," Utah State head coach Heather Cairns said. "She kept us in the match."

The 49ers fired 10 shots in the first half and seven in the second, while the Aggies got all four of their shots off in the first half.

"Long Beach is the 24th-ranked team in the country for a reason," Cairns said. "The first half we were able to play with them and we had some chances we just were not able to put away."

Utah State is now 2-6 against Long Beach State all-time. The Aggies also have been shutout in three-consecutive matches for the first time since the 2004 season.

Utah State returns to the pitch Sunday at 1 p.m. (MST) to face another former Big West opponent in Cal State Northridge. CSUN is 2-3 after getting beat by the hosts, San Francisco, 4-0, earlier Friday.

"This stretch of matches is tough on us," Cairns said. "It is hard to not see the growth translate into wins, but we are continuing to improve and getting better each match."

After this weekend, Utah State returns to the friendly confines of Chuck & Gloria Bell Soccer Field to host intra-state rival BYU on Saturday, Sept. 16 at 1 p.m.

 Utah State (2-3-0) vs. Long Beach State (4-1-0)
 Date: Sep 08, 2006  Attendance: 100
 Weather:
 Goals by period       1  2  Tot
 -------------------------------
 Utah State..........  0  0 -  0
 Long Beach State....  1  1 -  2
 SCORING SUMMARY:
  1.  39:39 LBSU Hurtado, Yeraldy (1) (Baca, Sara) - Strike into left side 20 yards out
  2.  66:15 LBSU Bolt, Hayley (3) (Silos, Kim)
 Shots: Utah State 4, Long Beach State 17
 Saves: Utah State 5 (Griffin, Ali 5), Long Beach State 3 (Ramos, Liz
 3)
 City By The Bay Classic.