Utah Falls to Pepperdine...Now Focusing on Conference Play

In a close 1-0 contest, the Utes fell to a good Pepperdine team this afternoon. The Utes are experiencing some tough challenges as they have dropped several close matches in the last few weeks after a near perfect beginning. However, the team is ready to keep tweaking their formation, practices, and game plan and move forward into a brand new season of conference play.

In addition to the game taking place today, the teams, fans, and school helped to promote cancer awareness by having a "pink game"...anyone who wore pink received free admission and the halftime show consisted of some awareness trivia. Thanks to all of our great fans who helped build a great atmosphere for this Sunday game!

The Utes will have a day off tomorrow then go hard the rest of the week in order to prepare for their first conference match next Saturday against the biggest rival...BYU. The game always promises to be intensely fought and undoubtedly exciting. Stay tuned to the blog and the official website this week for more inside updates and details on the game.

See the video below to hear what coach Rich Manning has to say about the upcoming week and how the team will overcome their current challenges.

p.s. Congrats to Utah Volleyball for defeating BYU Friday night and also to Football for taking down Louisville! GO UTES!

Utes Lose Heartbreaker in OT

The weather was beautiful and the setting couldn't have been better...but the Utes' night did not end favorably. The in-state rivalry is always a tough one and with an overtime goal the Aggies came out on top this evening. Freshman Zoe Van Gorder tallied her second goal of the season by heading in a great corner kick played by Chelsea Forbes. Goal Keeper Emalee Rogers also had a solid game in the goal, making a very impressive save in the first half. For more notes on the game as well as the box score, visit our official website.

The Utes will bounce back against Pepperdine this Sunday at Ute Field at 1pm. Don't forget....it's the "Pink Game" which means everyone who wears pink gets in for free! Pink Games are a way of recognizing and promoting cancer awareness, so come out and support!

In other Utah sports news, Utah Volleyball takes on BYU at home (Crimson Court) tomorrow night at 7pm. Come support the team as they look to win the first Deseret Duel of the year! Saturday night the Utah Football Team will be hosting Louisville at Rice Eccles Stadium...looking to recover from a disappointing loss to Oregon last week. GO UTES!

We Have a Winner!

Congratulations to Nick Collins for winning our ticket giveaway! He and three guests will be attending the game tonight...on us! Thank you to all who participated...there will be more giveaways in the near future so be sure to keep in touch through the blog, facebook, twitter, and our official website. Thanks again to everyone who entered the contest....we hope to see you all at the game tonight and in the future!

Don't forget, kickoff is tonight at 7pm at Rio Tinto Stadium.....see you there!

Win Free Admission to Utah Soccer at Rio Tinto Stadium!

The University of Utah soccer team is giving you a chance to win free admission for four people see the Utes battle Utah State Thursday night at Rio Tinto Stadium. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. MT. Check out the Utes at one of the premier soccer facilities in the country!

To enter the drawing, simply send an email to utahsoccer09@gmail.com with your name and contact telephone number, and you will be registered to win. One winner will be selected at random and will receive free admittance to the event for four people.

Please note: By entering the contest, you are acknowledging that you would like to receive periodic email updates from Head Coach Rich Manning about the Utah Soccer Team. Those people already receiving Utah Soccer updates are eligible for the contest but must enter by sending the email to utahsoccer09@gmail.com.

For the match preview as well as this week's game notes, please click here.

Weekly Update

The weekend proved to be a tough one, full of a lot of lessons...but the season is still young and the team is continuing to improve, develop, and grow as a group. Coaches and players alike were satisfied with many aspects of play over the weekend and everyone took away a list of improvements, both individual and team, as well.

Today and tomorrow the Utes will hit the field in important preparation for a Thursday night match vs. Utah State at Rio Tinto Stadium. The game is going to be very exciting! Neutral location, awesome field, two motivated teams, and an in-state rivalry! More details on the game to follow tomorrow and thursday!

The Utes' second match of the week is a great one as well...the team will host Pepperdine at Ute Field Sunday afternoon and to add to the excitement of a great game, it is also "Pink on the Pitch Day"....it is the first of the ongoing games at the University of Utah this year to promote cancer awareness. Fans dressed in pink will get into the game for free as well as receive a pink ribbon pop-up hat!

Utes Have Tough Weekend on the Road

Utah soccer, now 5-4-1 on the season encountered some tough competition at the UCLA tournament this weekend. The Utes fell to No.4 UCLA on friday night although Coach Manning was proud of the team's performance. This afternoon the team played to a tie against LMU; the Utes were up 2-1 but with just 7 minutes left in the game LMU tied the game and sent it into overtime. Neither team could find the back of the net in two overtime periods and the game ended in a draw. Manning comments, "...I think we did some nice things overall this weekend. We certainly got a lot of feedback on areas we need to work on if we are going to become the team we want to be."

Ute scorers of the weekend included Junior Forward Lauren Hair against UCLA (her second of the season). Today against LMU freshman Hanna Terry scored the first goal of the game for the Utes (her third of the season) and Kelly Isleib tallied her fourth goal of the year on a direct free kick later in the game (Isleib leads the team with 4 goals so far!). Check out our official website for more notes on the game as well as the box score.

The team will have a quick turn around again with an exciting in-state rivalry game against Utah State scheduled for Thursday night at Rio Tinto Stadium (the local MLS stadium!). Stay tuned for inside information about the game!

Utah Dorm Life

See what it's like in the typical dorm of Utah Soccer players! Freshman Zoe Van Gorder shows us around their 'crib'....

Utes Preparing for Tough, Exciting Games

The team (5-3) hit the road again yesterday afternoon and is now in sunny California preparing for a 7pm game tonight against No. 4 UCLA. The game will be another great test for the Utes as they inch closer to conference play. The Bruins are currently 4-1-1 on the season and the game promises to be a great battle. The Utes will then have a day off before competing agains LMU (Loyola Marymount) on Sunday afternoon.

It is always fun for the team to travel to Southern California, as there are some alumni who live in the area. Hailey Marsh, Chelsea Card, and Kiley Jones are three former outstanding Utes who will be around this weekend catching up with the team and cheering them on.

Check out our official website for more notes on the game and stay tuned to the blog for more tours of campus facilities and inside information about the team!

We also want to say good luck to all of our other 'fall sports' teams this weekend in their events....golf, tennis, cross country, volleyball, and football...GO UTES!

The Burbidge Academic Center

The "Burb" is a place where student athletes spend a lot of their spare time. It is conveniently located just west of Ute Field and it is open from very early (some football players do study hall starting at 6am most mornings!) until 9pm every weekday. The Burb is not only a place for studying, but it also houses some very important members of the athletics staff as well (counselors, an athletic director, compliance professionals, etc). In addition, there is a meeting room as well as a 'lounge' area with couches and a nice big TV where athletes can hang out and eat and socialize when they have down time.

Sophomore Lauren Dudley (one of our starting center backs!) takes us on a tour...

Take A Tour of the New Locker Room!

The new locker room is finally complete! The hallway is lined with team pictures from every year, the flatscreen TV is outlined with pictures of celebration from teams past and present, and the couches and lockers are looking sharp! Check it out!

Utah Soccer Loses A Heartbreaker To Colorado

The Utes (now with an overall record of 5-3) battled hard this afternoon and had an impressive second-half showing but it was not quite enough to keep No. 20 ranked CU out of the net. Colorado scored just 7 minutes into the game and the score stayed 1-0 until Sophomore Erin Dalley scored her third goal of the season in the 55th minute of play; she was set up by a great cross from Junior forward Lauren Hair. The score was tied until the 88th minute when CU finished a free kick opportunity close to the net.

Coach Rich Manning commented, "I thought we showed a lot of character today. Coming into the game we didn't have our legs underneath us, we were fighting some fatigue from our midweek game and we took an early goal. But to gather ourselves back together and hang in there, I thought really showed a lot of competitive spirit....This is another hard lesson for us to learn and hopefully (we) can use the experiences from these games to make improvement." For more post-game quotes and details about the game, please visit our official website.

The Utes have a much needed week off now as they will rest for 2 days then hit it hard again monday in order to prepare for a tournament at UCLA next weekend. Stay tuned to the blog this next week as we will have a behind the scenes look at our new locker room and the new weight room!

Utes Take Down Princeton, Exciting Night At Ute Field!

The Utah Soccer shut out Princeton 2-0 this evening in an aggressively fought match at Ute Field. The Utes are pumped about the win and proud of their 5-2 overall record. Redshirt Sophomore Erin Dalley and Freshman Natalie Young gave the Utes their goals this evening (see videos below for post-game interviews with the scorers!) The team hits the road tomorrow to head to play Colorado on Friday. Check out our official website for more details on tonight's game as well as the upcoming weekend!

In addition to an awesome soccer game, Ute Field was alive with energy tonight as it was the "Crimson Game" for the athletics department, meaning several other sports teams came to cheer on the soccer team. The athletes tested out their soccer skills with relay races at half time. Also a highlight was the University of Utah Drumline performance at half time...this nationally recognized musical group played at President Obama's inauguration...talented bunch! Check out the videos below of halftime excitement.

Finally, tonight was a special night for Coach Rich Manning and the Utah Soccer Program as Rich achieved his 100th victory as a Ute. This is a huge accomplishment for Rich and it says a lot about how much he has done for this program in such a relatively short period of time. University of Utah Athletic Director Dr. Chris Hill presented Rich with a great award of recognition after the match...

Weekly Update

The Utes have another busy week as they are in the process not only of recovering from a game but also preparing for yet another home game tomorrow night. The team is focused and ready to go for tomorrow night's game. Join us at Ute Field tomorrow night for the match at 7:30pm. Check out our official website for more information and details about the game!

In other news this week, the team celebrated 2 birthdays over the weekend! Sophomore Chelsea Forbes turned 19 and Senior Kelly Isleib turned 22! Be sure to wish the gals happy birthday when you see them this week!

Finally, some very exciting 'behind the scenes' news.... (Drum roll)......The Utah Soccer Team's new locker room is officially finished!! Stay tuned to see photos and take a virtual tour!

Deja Vu All Over Again

In case you missed it, we lost another close one at home yesterday. William & Mary came to town and slipped away with a 3-1 victory. We had a couple of defensive lapses and couldn't take advantage of several chances.

The Tribe played in a tight defensive shell and waited for counter attack opportunities. They got one in early on for a 1-0 lead. We came back within two minutes and got an equalizer as Lauren Hair fed Hanna Terry, who rifled it home from 20 yards out. We fell behind again just 10 minutes later. And we chased the game for the next 65 minutes (just so you know, that can be really tiring!).

We had several close calls, including two balls that were saved off the line by defenders. As we pushed for the tying goal late in the second half, William & Mary scored a third on the counter attack...it was not to be on the day.

For more information on yesterday's game click here!

So, we've had two tough results at home. It's important for our team to stay confident and positive. The past two games have taught us some good lessons and things to work on:

How to play "catch up"
How to come back from mistakes
How to play against teams that are in a defensive mode and asking us to carry the game
Being more precise around the goal

and others...

We'll be back at Ute Field on Wednesday, September 9 at 7:30 PM to face the Princeton Tigers from the Ivy League. Princeton is a traditional power in women's soccer and we expect another tight battle.

For more information on Princeton click here.

Come and join us. It's a Crimson Night...and the athletes from all the other sports here at the U. will be there to cheer us on.

Big Weekend in Utah

We've been out of commission for a few days as our faithful correspondent, Danielle Sample, is busy organizing and attending her sister's wedding!

The team has been busy getting ready for our next game at 1 PM Sunday against a resilient William & Mary team. The Tribe, coached by the legendary John Daly (over 300 career victories), pulled out a 1-0 against BYU Friday night and will be eager to follow that up tomorrow.

You can find out more about W&M by clicking here.

There are also other things going on at the U. Thursday night was the football team's 2009 home opener and the Utes defeated Utah State, 35-17, in front of a sold out crowd.

And this afternoon, many of the players and coaches are heading down to Rio Tinto Stadium to watch the important World Cup qualifying game between the U.S. and El Salvador. It should be an electric atmosphere and we can't wait.

We hope to see our friends tomorrow at Ute Field. Come and help the Utes bounce back from our first loss of the season on Wednesday.

Successful UYSA Night....but Utes Fall to Weber

Ute Field was an exciting place to be tonight...an in-state rivalry and a great night with all of our local youth players. Unfortunately, the game did not turn out how the Utes would have liked. Weber scored early on and then played the rest of the game in a very defensive mode. The final score was 0-1. Check our official website for a full report on the game, statistics, and more quotes from players. Also, check out official post-game audio on our ItunesU.

Below are some highlights from USYA night as well as some comments after the game from Junior Captain Lauren Hair. Stay tuned for further updates and exclusive stories later this week as the Utes will take the field again and look to bounce back against William & Mary Sunday afternoon.

Utah vs. Weber Tonight at Ute Field

The game tonight kicks of at 7:30pm sharp at Ute Field...this match will definitely be an intense, hard fought one as both teams are undefeated and there is a lot of in-state competition between the players.

Tonight will be Utah Youth Soccer Night at Ute Field. All youth players are invited to come and participate in a free youth clinic put on by UYSA coaches at 6pm. Other events include free hot dogs, other giveaways, and some super fun inflatables for the young ones to enjoy!

Come out and support your Utah Utes as they attempt to continue their undefeated streak as well as give Coach Rich Manning his 100th win in our program! It's going to be an exciting night...don't miss it!

Highlight Videos!

Check out this link to our very own Utah Soccer youtube channel! The highlights and goals from our Santa Clara and Cal Poly games are featured along with a great video ("The Lemeza Video") about the University of Utah and it's surrounding areas, attractions, etc. Keep checking back as there will continue to be updated highlights!

Utah Soccer Ranked in the Top 25

The Univeristy of Utah Women's Soccer Team is now ranked No. 21 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). Utah ranks No. 3 in the NSCAA Pacific Rankings. The Utes are very excited about receiving deserved recognition after the first two weekends of play, but also recognize that it is still early and there are many upcoming games that will further determine their placings. Go to our official website for details and quotes in the official press release.

Check out all of the different rankings that include Utah:

NSCAA(national No.21)

NSCAA(pacific No.3)

Soccertimes.com(No.18)

Socceramerica.com(No.19)

Top Drawer Soccer(Picked in Top 64 regarding NCAA Tournament Selection)

FUN FACT: the University of Utah is one of only four schools in the entire nation to be nationally ranked in football, volleyball, and soccer right now! (The others include Florida, Penn State, and Cal.) WOW! GO UTES!

Keep tuning in for updates as the Utes take on Weber State tomorrow night in attempt to further their perfect record and prove their rankings.