Hatch, Murphy score brace as BYU women's soccer earns 1st win over Santa Clara


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PROVO — Thirty-one goals. Five shutouts. Ten straight wins.

And now, one step closer to a third-straight West Coast Conference title.

Michele Murphy and Ashley Hatch each scored two goals, and No. 17 BYU women’s soccer picked up its first win over Santa Clara in program history with a 5-2 win in front of 2,279 fans at South Field on Thursday night.

The Cougars (11-3-2, 5-0 WCC) pulled away with two goals in the second half after finishing the first 45 minutes with a 3-2 advantage despite outshooting the Broncos (10-4-2, 3-2 WCC), 11-3.

“It feels really good, especially after the way we started,” Murphy said of the win and the streak. “I think we’re still climbing right now with four more games left in our season. But it feels really good to be playing the way we are playing, and still get results.”

It was Murphy’s second goal, her fifth of the year, that allowed BYU to sprint to its first multi-goal lead over the defending WCC co-champions and cruise to the end. Niki Fernandes set up the goal, cruising down the right sideline just two minutes after halftime before launching a perfectly placed cross into the box for Murphy’s easy tap-in goal.


It feels really good, especially after the way we started. I think we're still climbing right now with four more games left in our season. But it feels really good to be playing the way we are playing, and still get results.

–BYU forward Michele Murphy


“It was a really fun night. I can’t attribute those goals to myself,” Murphy said. “They were all my teammates, especially that second one. It was all Niki Fernandes.”

Hatch opened the scoring in the third minute, taking a pass from Elena Medeiro and scoring from inside the 6-yard box.

But Santa Clara responded less than a minute later, with Mariana Galvan finishing Sofia Huerta’s cross inside the near post to tie the match at a goal apiece. Murphy put the Cougars ahead in the 23rd minute, but the Broncos responded through Brittany Ambrose’s goal two minutes later off a free kick from just right of the 18-yard box.

“It was an exciting game, and we went out, did our job and Santa Clara came right back and answered,” BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood said. “They are a very good team with very good players. You can never count them out. I’m proud of the way our defense stuck with it.”

Hatch put her second one in the back of the net in the 28th minute, and BYU took a confident-but-narrow lead into the break.

Then, the floodgates opened, both in shots and possession.

“We felt really good going into the second half because we were finishing our chances,” Murphy said. “We were feeling confident, and so we were able to stay composed and put two more goals in.”

Murphy gave the Cougars a 4-2 lead less than two minutes into the second half, and freshman Nadia Gomes capped the scoring with her second goal of the year in the 88th minute by nutmegging the goalkeeper from the right side on a counter attack.

“Santa Clara is one of the top programs in the country,” said Rockwood, noting that the Broncos eliminated BYU from the NCAA tournament four straight years in the 1990s. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for them and their coaches. You beat a quality opponent like that, and it’s certainly a big deal for us.”

BYU could’ve had even more. The Cougars outshot the Broncos 19-5, including 8-4 in shots on goal, in 90 minutes of offensive soccer in Provo. Jaiden Thornock saw a screamer rise inches above the crossbar in the 35th minute, and Gomes was denied by Santa Clara goalkeeper Andi Tostanoski less than two minutes before her goal.

Kat Snyder made two saves for the Cougars, who pitched a second-half shutout and allowed a goal for the first time since Oct. 3 at San Diego. After opening the season 1-3-2, the Cougars are 11-3-2 and primed for another NCAA tournament bid.

“Santa Clara is a very dangerous team, coming back and tying it up 2-2,” Rockwood said. “I was proud of our girls for not panicking too much.”

BYU’s final match at South Field kicks off Saturday at 7 p.m. against San Francisco. The Cougars finish the regular season with three straight road games in California.

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