Five Second Half Goals Lift Cougs over Sooners 6-0

AUSTIN, Texas — No. 7 BYU women’s soccer shut out Oklahoma with a 6-0 victory behind a Bella Folino brace in the quarterfinals of the Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Tournament.

The victory marks head coach Jennifer Rockwood’s 450th career win.

“At halftime, we talked about getting back to what we do as a team,” Rockwood said. “The Sooners were doing a good job in the first half with getting us frustrated with their direct play, and in the second half we committed to settling down and allowing our opportunities to come to us. Phenomenal second half for us, really proud of the way we played. We had lots of different goal scorers tonight, so when they tried to shut one or two down, we had others ready to put the ball in the back of the net.”

In the victory, Folino scored her fifth and sixth goals this year for the brace. Ellie Boren notched her sixth and seventh assists of the year.

Senior midfielder Olivia Wade-Katoa notched a goal and an assist in the game, while sophomore center back Izzi Stratton tallied her first assist of the season.

Sophomores Allie Fryer and Erin Bailey now lead the Cougars in goals with 10 apiece, as each scored in the match. Ellie Walbruch scored her ninth goal of the season as BYU’s final goal scorer in the game with a goal in the 89th minute.

Kendell Petersen and Brecken Mozingo lead the Cougars in assists with 11, as the pair tallied one apiece in the quarterfinal victory. 

BYU outshot Oklahoma 17-13, eight being on frame to OU’s two.

Lynette Hernaez and Savannah Mason shared time in goal for BYU, earning the shutout together. It was the Cougars' sixth shutout of the season and their fourth shutout in their past five games.

FIRST HALF

BYU and Oklahoma both started the game fast and aggressive, exchanging corner kicks and fouls before the Cougars settled in and gained possession of the ball in the sixth minute.

In the ninth minute, Boren beat her defender on the left side of the pitch and sent a bouncing ball into the middle of the 18-yard box to the feet of Folino who flicked the ball past the goalkeeper, giving BYU an early 1-0 lead.

The Sooners gained momentum with a run up the spine of the field and into BYU’s box in the 21st minute, stopped by a Laveni Vaka slide tackle. 

In the 41st minute, Oklahoma earned a corner kick, resulting in a shot that hit off the crossbar.

As the teams continued to battle through the remainder of the first half, BYU held its 1-0 advantage. BYU and Oklahoma had four shots apiece, while the Sooners had four corner kicks compared to the Cougars’ two. Folino's shot was the only first half shot on goal.

Bella with the perfect touch🤌

📺 https://t.co/bG88xGl4mK pic.twitter.com/Q1Ev5UFp21

— BYU Women's Soccer (@byusoccer_w) October 30, 2023

 

SECOND HALF

Just five minutes into the second half, Wade-Katoa dribbled the ball up the left side of the field, sending a pass back to Boren at center field. She split two Oklahoma defenders with a through-ball to the feet of Fryer, who slid it past the keeper for BYU’s second goal of the night. 

The Cougar offense continued its attack as Folino fired off another shot in the 53rd minute, saved by Oklahoma’s Olivia Ramey between the woodwork. 

In the 61st minute, Petersen sent a long ball over the heads of the Sooner backline as Folino out-paced the OU goalkeeper and put the ball away for her first brace of the season, extending BYU’s lead to 3-0.

The Cougar attack did not let up, as Mozingo took a corner kick in the 68th minute. The ball was hit by Stratton to Wade-Katoa, who slid her shot through the goalkeeper’s hands for BYU’s fourth goal of the night.

BYU continued its offensive pressure as Bailey dribbled a ball from the right side of the pitch into the Oklahoma box, sliding a left-footed shot past the keeper for BYU’s fifth goal of the night in the 83rd minute.

Walbruch closed out the scoring for the Cougars with a goal in the 89th minute off of a quick turn in the box, putting a bow on a 6-0 shutout victory.

The Cougars now advance to the semifinal game on Wednesday, Nov. 1 at 6 p.m. MT against UCF, who picked up an upset 3-2 victory over TCU in their quarterfinal. Wednesday's match will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.