BYU Women’s Soccer Eliminated By Stanford In NCAA College Cup
Dec 1, 2023, 8:43 PM
RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - DECEMBER 01: Olivia Smith #2 of the BYU Cougars slide tackles Avani Brandt #18 of the Stanford Cardinal in the first half during the semifinals round at Wake Med Soccer Park on December 01, 2023 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
(Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
BYU women’s soccer didn’t have another miracle on Friday night in the National Semifinals against Stanford.
One week ago, BYU roared back from a 3-0 deficit against North Carolina to pull off a miracle 4-3 comeback win. That wasn’t to be against the Cardinal.
BYU Women’s Soccer falls to Stanford, 2-0
No. 2-seed Stanford defeated No. 1 BYU 2-0 in Cary, North Carolina. BYU’s season comes to a close at 20-3-3.
In the first minute of the game, Stanford’s Allie Montoya got the Cardinal on the board from an assist by Stanford star Jasmine Aikey.
Three minutes later, BYU found themselves down 2-0 after Stanford’s Maya Doms booted through another goal.
Offsides call in the 42nd minute
BYU continued to battle with nine shots. For a second, they appeared to have their breakthrough in the 42nd minute on a goal from Ellie Walbruch. NCAA officials ruled the goal an offsides. Television replays suggested it wasn’t an offside, but BYU had to play on.
That ultimately became the final gasp for BYU. The Cougars had 11 shots in the second half, but the undefeated Cardinal didn’t give up any goals to the high-powered BYU attack.
Walbruch was given a yellow card in the 75th minute, highlighting the frustration that BYU was experiencing in the match.
Stanford will play in the National Championship
Stanford advances and will take on Florida State for the National Championship on Monday night.
It’s a missed opportunity for a BYU team loaded with senior leadership. Head coach Jennifer Rockwood will now focus on the offseason and retooling her program in year two in the Big 12 Conference.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X and Threads: @Mitch_Harper.
