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COLUMBIA, S.C. — The BYU women’s soccer team hasn’t been to the Round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament since 2012, when the Cougars lost to North Carolina in the quarterfinals.
Needless to say, they were motivated to get back.
Ashley Hatch and Michele Vasconcelos scored a goal in either half to lead the fourth-ranked BYU women’s soccer team to a 2-1 win over Oklahoma in the second round of the NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament Thursday at the University of South Carolina.
Both players are now in the top 10 nationally for goals scored, with Hatch’s 19th goal tied for third and Vasconcelos’ 16th marker of the year tied for ninth in the NCAA.
“You can see their expectations and what they want right now,” BYU associate head coach Chris Watkins told ESPN 960 after the match. “As a coach, it’s awesome. You just sit back and see what they can do.”
Hatch’s goal gave the Cougars (18-2-1) a 1-0 lead just 10 minutes into the match. Hatch finished off Stephanie Ney’s cross into the middle of the box and a one-touch dish from Michele Vasconcelos for Hatch’s 19th goal of the season, tied for the third-most nationally.
The senior from Gilbert, Arizona, who missed two games to play with the U.S. women’s national team, set a single-season mark for her BYU career with the goal. Hatch previously scored 18 goals as a sophomore before missing significant portions of last season with injuries.
"We know that if we can get the first goal then our chances of winning the game are very good," Hatch said. "So every game we step on the field expecting ourselves to score first. We just pushed hard."
BYU opened fire early, putting up eight shots in the first 20 minutes of the match, including three from Hatch. The Cougars outshot the Sooners 10-3 in the first half of Oklahoma’s first-ever trip to the NCAA second round after last week’s 1-0 win over SMU.
NCAA Tournament
No. 4 BYU shuts out UNLV to open NCAA women's soccer tournament with win
Elena Medeiros and Michele Vasconcelos each scored a goal to lead the No. 4 BYU women's soccer team past UNLV, 2-0 in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament at South Field on Friday night."We didn't press as much in the first half as we did in the second, so I think that' s something we need to add to our game on Saturday," BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood said. "Our goal always is from the whistle to try and overwhelm and make our opponents uncomfortable and make them play a little bit different than they're used to playing."
BYU held a 14-6 shots margin with four shots on goal in a game with a comfortable amount of possession for the Cougars’ first game in South Carolina in program history.
“I knew they were a good team,” Watkins said. “I’ve seen a lot of film — maybe too much — on these guys. I anticipated a good match, and our defenders did a good job of shutting down a lot of what they wanted to do.”
Vasconcelos doubled BYU’s advantage with a counter-attacking shot from inside the 18-yard box in the 64th minute that caromed off the crossbar for a 2-0 lead.
The senior from Alta High also has 12 assists on the season, making her one of three players in the NCAA to be ranked in the top 10 in goals and assists.
Oklahoma’s Rachel Ressler pulled one back with 8:21 remaining, finishing off a one-on-one situation to put the Sooners (14-6-2) on the board.
The circumstances of the goal were unique, though. Nay exited the pitch after complaining about a broken shoelace to the head official, but the referee claimed he never allowed her to leave. That forced the Cougars to play down a player during a corner kick, and the Sooners took advantage with a ball over the depleted back line and Ressler’s easy slot into the back of the net.
Hannah Clark made three saves to preserve the win for BYU.
“Everybody’s in good spirits,” Watkins said. “Giving up a goal sometimes puts a dent in your armor. But at this level, you’ll give up a goal on occasion. We’ll learn from it.”
The Cougars advanced to face top-seeded South Carolina, which defeated Colorado 1-0 on a late penalty kick in the regional's evening game.
“When your top players are seniors and goal-scorers, expectations are high at BYU,” Watkins said. “We’d better be playing in the Sweet 16 — and we are.”
