Cougars conclude their European tour with four wins

PROVO, Utah — The BYU women’s soccer team completed a four-game, 13-day tour to Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Italy with a perfect 4-0 record. The Cougars recorded 19 goals, defeating two club teams in each Austria and Croatia.

Senior Brecken Mozingo and sophomore Allie Fryer paced the team in the scoring column, notching four goals apiece during the tour. Senior Ellie Maughan tallied the most assists with three. A total of eight Cougars scored goals and 12 tallied assists.

Game 1 vs FK Austria Wien Frauen (W, 3-1)

The Cougars started their foreign tour with a 3-1 win against Austrian club team, FK Austria Wien Frauen. Fryer scored early for the Cougars with a goal in the 13th minute, assisted by Olivia Wade and Jamie Shepherd. Mozingo found the back of the net in the 30th minute of the game, off assists from Fryer and Rachel McCarthy. In the final 10 minutes of the game, Maughan sent a corner kick into the box that resulted in an own-goal, giving the Cougars a 3-0 lead. FK Austria answered back in the final minutes of the game with a goal of its own, making the final score 3-1.

Game 2 vs FC Bergheim Damen 1 (W, 2-1)

BYU battled FC Bergheim Damen 1 for the second game of its European tour, pulling out the 2-1 victory. Ruby Hladek opened the scoring in the 38th minute with an unassisted shot from the top of the box. FC Bergheim answered back to tie the game up at 1-1 going into the half. BYU gained some momentum in the second half as Fryer beat the FC Bergheim goalkeeper off a through-ball from Bella Folino, resulting in the second and final Cougar goal of the game.

Game 3 vs ŽNK Hajduk Split (W, 6-0)

The Cougars took on ŽNK Hajduk Split for game three of their foreign tour, notching a 6-0 shutout. Folino found the back of the net early with a goal in the second minute of regulation assisted by Wade and Maughan. BYU continued its hard offensive press, resulting in a goal by Wade in the 15th minute. Less than 10 minutes later, center back Izzi Stratton connected with midfielder Sierra Pennock to move the ball up the field. Fryer collected the ball in BYU’s offensive third, scoring her first goal of the match, third on the tour. Hladek closed out the first half with a goal of her own in the 34th minute. Fryer added another goal in the second half for a brace, followed by a goal from UCLA transfer Ellie Walbruch in the 75th minute to close out the game.

Game 4 vs ŽNK Dinamo Zagreb (W, 8-0)

BYU faced ŽNK Dinamo Zagreb in its final game in Europe. The Cougars scored eight goals, the most of any game on the tour. Mozingo had a quick start with a goal in the 4th minute, followed by two more in the first 30 minutes on the pitch for the only hat trick of the European stint. Folino added a goal in the sixth minute, blasting a far-post left-footer off a through-ball assist from Maughan. Dixon hit a shot from the top of the 18-yard box for another goal in the 21st minute of play. Walbruch and Dixon both capitalized on opponent turnovers in the box for two more goals before halftime, with BYU leading 7-0. The Cougars slowed things down in the second half, notching one more goal in regulation. Shepherd earned the last goal, taking a 15-yard shot off a Stratton assist, bringing the final score to 8-0 to close out BYU’s European competition. 

Next up: The Cougars will compete in their inaugural season in the Big 12 Conference this coming fall.