PROVO, Utah – No. 6 BYU knocked off CSUN 5-0 with 36 shots and a strong second half Saturday night at South Field.

“We wanted to show that we can score because that’s who we are,” said freshman midfielder Sierra Pennock. “We showed perseverance after our goal in the first half and we wanted to get a lot more in the second half.”

The Cougars wrapped up a week of three home games on a positive note, holding the Matadors to just one shot for the entire 90 minutes of tonight's match.

BYU began the game with an aggressive attack. A quick drive to led to the Cougars’ first shot of the game by forward Ellie Maughan on the bottom left of the goal before being curbed by a CSUN defender in the fourth minute.

A pair of fouls committed by the Matadors and one on the Cougars within a minute-span came moments before forward Bella Folino would rack up two shots in the 15th and 17th minutes, respectively.

The Cougars’ offense continued to apply pressure with a corner kick by forward Brecken Mozingo sailing to the center of the penalty area before being stunted in a mass of Matador defenders.

Despite the score remaining knotted at zero by the end of the 23rd minute, BYU had tallied seven shots compared to CSUN’s zero. The Cougars forceful approach paid off with the first goal of the night coming from Mozingo’s shot into the left side of the net off an assist from forward Allie Fryer in the 43rd minute.

Entering the second half, BYU had scored six second-half goals on the season compared to just two in any first half. Aiming to continue their second period success, the Cougars drove to the right side of the field nearing the goal before a BYU handball awarded the Matadors a free kick to curb the momentum.

In the 58th minute, forward Rachel McCarthy fired a low dart to the center of the penalty box that ricocheted to Folino who put it away for the second goal of the night. 

Freshman midfielder Sierra Pennock would notch her first career goal and BYU’s third score of the night after taking a wide midfield pass from midfielder Olivia Smith in the 67th minute. She beat a Matador defender on the right side of the field to place a ball that made its way just above the reach of the CSUN goalkeeper.

The ensuing five minutes would see three more BYU shots, coming from Jamie Shepherd, Kendell Petersen and Mozingo.

Freshmen midfielder Emma Neff and forward Avery Frischknecht saw minutes as Cougars for the first time with substitutions in the 73rd minute.

After a pass by Mozingo into the penalty box, Fryer would place a header that lobbed high into the far left corner of the goal in the 82nd minute to mark her first career goal to push the BYU lead to 4-0. Less than a minute later, the Cougars continued to stretch its lead, going up 5-0 after Mozingo was awarded a penalty kick in the box. Mozingo's goal marked her second of the match and third this season.  

The Matadors would tally their first shot of the night in the 84th minute to no avail. The Cougars had racked up 32 at that point in the match, five of which found the back of the net for the 5-0 home win.

BYU next takes the field Thursday, Sept. 8 as the Cougars return to South Field for their fourth-straight home game to face SEC opponent Arkansas at 8 p.m. MDT. The game will be carried live on the BYU Sports Network — BYURadio.org/BYU Radio app/BYU Radio 107.9 FM.

PROVO, Utah — The Cougars will host CSUN on Saturday at South Field.

GAME NOTES

Saturday’s matchup is scheduled for 8 p.m. MDT. The game will be carried live on BYURadio.org/BYU Radio app/BYU Radio 107.9 FM. The game will also be streamed on the BYUtv App. 

LAST TIME ON THE FIELD. BYU last played the Alabama Crimson Tide on South Field Thursday night. The Cougars lost 3-2 despite their push in the final minutes of the match. BYU’s goals came from Rachel McCarthy and Brecken Mozingo for their first goals of the 2022 season.

BYU NOTES (2-1-1, 0-0-0)

• BYU is currently ranked No. 6 nationally and No. 2 in the West Coast Conference under head coach Jennifer Rockwood
• After the 3-2 loss to Alabama and a 2-2 tie against Colorado earlier this week, BYU is now 2-1-1 on the season
• Jamie Shepherd leads the Cougars in goals (3) and points (7)
• Mozingo leads the team in assists (2)
• Shepherd was recognized by the WCC as Offensive Player of the Week and named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week coming into week three of the regular season
• Goalkeeper Savanna Mason is the only BYU player to have played all 90 minutes in the first four games of the season

Head Coach - Jennifer Rockwood

• Record at BYU: 426-124-48
• 28th season as head coach of BYU
• Seventh in NCAA Division I in active career winning percentage (.754)  

THE MATADORS (1-4, 0-0-0)

• CSUN began its 2022 season with a win against California Baptist and four losses against No. 14 Pepperdine, No. 3 UCLA, Loyola Marymount and Utah Valley University
• CSUN is currently ranked No. 10 in the Big West Conference
• The Matadors last played UVU on Thursday night at Clyde Field, losing 3-1 after surrendering three first-half goals
• Cindy Artega leads her team with two goals, four points and 14 shots on the season

Head Coach - Christine Johnson

• First official season as head coach of the Matadors
• Acting head coach in 2021

COUGARS VS MATADORS. The Cougars and Matadors have played three times previously with BYU leading the series 3-0. The last time the two teams met was Sept. 19, 2002 when the Cougars beat the Matadors 2-1 on South Field. 

BROADCAST INFORMATION

• Saturday, Sept. 3, at 8 p.m. MDT on South Field
• Radio: BYURadio.org/BYU Radio App/BYU Radio 107.9 FM
• Radio play-by-play: Jason Shepherd
• BYUtv App