Hatch leads BYU past No. 23 Long Beach

PROVO, Utah – Sophomore forward Ashley Hatch led BYU women’s soccer to a 2-0 win over No. 23 Long Beach State Saturday, scoring both goals for the Cougars.

“We have had some tough losses here, but [these girls] continue to battle every day in practice with good attitudes and hard work and it really paid off tonight,” BYU head coach Jennifer Rockwood said.

Hatch scored her first goal on a header off a Marissa Nimmer corner kick 30 minutes into the first half. Nimmer's corner found Hatch at the back post and she put the header down into the goal for the Cougar’s first score. While Hatch’s goal was the only one of the first half, BYU controlled the ball for the majority of the half and created several chances that simply did not find the back of the net.

Hatch’s second goal came in the 74th minute when she took the ball into the box and slid it past the Long Beach keeper for BYU’s second score. The Cougars continued to create opportunities throughout the half, taking eight shots and putting three on goal. BYU finished with 14 total shots and seven on frame.

“Tonight, especially the first half, our ball movement and composure with the ball was as good as we have seen it so far this year,” Rockwood said. “I’m really proud of the girls.”

The Cougar defense bounced back from a loss on Thursday and had a very strong game. Senior goalkeeper Katherine Snyder recorded her first career 90-minute shutout as she played the entire game for the first time this season. The BYU back four (Annie Amos, Taylor Campbell Isom, Sarah Chambers and Avery Calton) also played all 90 minutes and turned in a strong performance in front of Snyder, limiting the 49ers to eight shots.

“They have very great attacking, creative players and we were able to keep the ball away from them,” Rockwood said.

Snyder kept her shutout alive in the second half with a diving kick-save in the 62nd minute when a Long Beach forward got a clean look at goal. Snyder finished with four saves.

“Everybody is accountable for their responsibility and we were able to put it all together against a very good team tonight,” Rockwood said. “Tonight a lot of hard work came together and hopefully we can just build from that.”

The Cougars welcome the Oregon Ducks to South Field next Thursday, Sept. 18 at 7:00 p.m. MDT. The game will be broadcast on BYUtv and can be heard on the Cougar IMG Sports Network and BYU Radio Sirius XM channel 143.