The real eye-opener is the possible fall that Idaho State is in the midst of after having reached the Big Sky Final a year ago. The Bengals, Big Sky champions in 2012, have struggled through the early part of the campaign with a 1-6-1 record and the only win coming against Division II Westminster, which just moved up from the NAIA.
Idaho State's other positive result was a 1-1 draw against Boise State, which is also finding a hard go of things with a 1-4-2 record that also has them among the worst of the Mountain West Conference in regards to non-conference results. The Broncos' lone victory was a 1-0 win against Idaho.
The big litmus test for the teams in the region is Washington State, an NCAA tournament team. Three teams out of the Big Sky and Mountain West took on the Pac-12 side and two nearly came away with a surprise result. Boise State fell 2-1 while Montana took the Cougars all the way to overtime before falling 1-0. In the border battle, WSU came out on top 3-1 against Idaho.
Here is a round-up of the action thus far in the Big Sky and Mountain West:
Friday, August 21
Indiana State 1 :: 3 Idaho (@ Montana)
The Vandals fell behind early with the visitors scoring in just the third minute of the contest on what was Indiana State's only shot of the half. Idaho put five shots on frame in the half, but it was not until after the break that they began hit the back of the net. On a ball from Olivia Baggerly, Kayla Watanabe beat two defenders en route to pulling things even four minutes into the second half. A penalty converted by Elexis Schlossarek in the 69th put the Vandals in front and Reagan Quigley added some insurance, beating the keeper one-on-one off a ball from Megan Goo. MORE [+]
Missouri State 2 :: 1 Idaho State
The visitors snared an early lead less than two minutes into the match and held the advantage until Maria Sanchez (American Falls, ID) tied things up for the Bengals in the 66th minute. Alix Opfer, however, scored again for MSU in the 77th for the victory. MORE [+]
Wyoming 0 :: 0 Montana
Kailey Norman and Maddie Vincent combined for the shutout with a half each. Norman made two saves in the first half before taking another shot (on a play ruled offside) to the face in the 44th minute. Vincent made stops in the second half. MORE [+]
Eastern Washington 2 :: 1 UTEP
The Eagles fell behind 34 minutes into the contest, but pulled even 10 minutes later when Delaney Romero (Yakima, WA) put Chloe Williams (Spokane, WA) on a breakaway with an excellent through ball. With nine minutes remaining in the contest Devan Talley put a shot out of the keeper's reach for the game-winner. MORE [+]
Boise State 0 :: 2 Samford
Scoreless through the first 45, the hosts broke the stalemate two minutes into the second half and added some insurance in the 74th. MORE [+]
Northern Arizona 2 :: OT :: 3 Grand Canyon
Ashlynn Curnow (Boise, ID) set up NAU's second go-ahead goal in the 66th minute, but was not enough as GCU got the winner in overtime.
Northern Colorado 0 :: 1 Colorado College
Southern Utah 1 :: 2 North Texas (@ Las Vegas)
Weber State 0 :: 3 North Carolina
Portland State 0 :: 3 Arizona State
North Dakota 0 :: 2 Northwestern
Fresno State 0 :: 5 Duke
Central Arkansas 0 :: 1 Utah State
Colorado 1 :: 1 Colorado State
Denver 0 :: 2 Air Force
San Jose State 3 :: 0 Lamar
Gonzaga 1 :: 1 Nevada
Florida State 3 :: 1 New Mexico
Utah Valley 0 :: 6 San Diego State
Texas A&M-CC 0 :: 1 UNLV
Sunday, August 23
Eastern Washington 2 :: 1 New Mexico State
Emily Bringgold put away a loose ball off of a corner in the 31st minute to give the Eagles the lead, but the visitors tied it up in the 53rd and ultimately took the match to overtime. They found the winner in the 108th minute when Savannah Hoekstra (Spokane, WA), battling the flu, connected with Tasha Luu (Colville, WA). MORE [+]
Indiana State 3 :: 4 Montana
The Grizzlies went from a scoreless draw two days earlier to an absolute goalfest in which two goals from freshman Dani Morris were big. Five minutes into the second half Morris gave the Grizzlies what looked like an insurmountable three goal lead from about 12 yards out on a ball from Jamie Simon. However, the Sycamores rallied with three goals in 13 minutes to pull even in the 65th at three each. From there, the two sides were deadlocked until Morris took a throw-in from Mary Gintz on the left side, beat her marker and fired home in the 107th minute for the win. Gintz opened the scoring for the Grizzlies earlier in the day, putting a cross in off of a defender in the 18th minute. Chapelle Pederson pushed the lead to two on a strike from the top of the area in the 36th. MORE [+]
Boise State 0 :: 4 Ole Miss
The Rebels scored just three minutes into the contest and completely dominated the rest of the way, not allowing a single shot by the Broncos while scoring three more on their 17 shots. MORE [+]
Weber State 4 :: 0 Duke (@ North Carolina)
Southern Utah 3 :: 1 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (@ Las Vegas)
Air Force Academy 0 :: 1 Northern Colorado
North Dakota 2 :: 1 Northern Illinois
Portland State 0 :: 3 Cal State Northridge
Fresno State 0 :: 7 North Carolina
Air Force 0 :: 1 Northern Colorado
San Jose State 1 :: 2 Rice
Texas Tech 1 :: 0 New Mexico
Missouri State 0 :: 3 Utah State
Colorado State 1 :: 0 Denver
North Texas 1 :: 0 UNLV
Colorado 3 :: 0 Colorado College
San Diego State 2 :: 0 Kentucky
Monday, August 24
Idaho 1 :: 3 Washington State
In the border battle between the two programs postponed a day due to air quality, the Cougars controlled matters from the start, but it was an own goal that put them on the board first when a cross from Kaitlyn Johnson nine minutes into the match intended for Kailiana Johnson went in off the head of Idaho's Kayla Watanabe. Kaitlyn Johnson then put away a cross from Kelsee Crenshaw in the 28th. Beau Bremer poked a ball home inside the six on a Tia Gavin cross in the 33rd for a three-goal advantage. The Vandals answered before the break with Kayleigh Frederick getting her head on a a free kick from Clara Gomez in the 37th, but the Cougars only needed to make one save in the second half to keep things as they were the rest of the way. MORE - UI [+] -- WSU [+]
Idaho State 1 :: 3 UC Irvine
The Bengals kept the hosts off the board in the first half, but the Anteaters scored back-to-back goals in the 51st and 53rd to grab a firm command. Maria Sanchez scored her second of the year in the 59th to put ISU back in it, but the hosts added some insurance in the 67th and held on for the win. MORE [+]
Sacramento State 1 :: 2 UC Davis
Wednesday, August 26
New Mexico 1 :: 0 New Mexico State
Thursday, August 27
Pittsburgh 0 :: 1 Northern Colorado
Wyoming 2 :: 2 Hawaii
Friday, August 28
Cal State Fullerton 4 :: 2 Idaho State
A handball penalty put the Titans on the board in the 22nd minute and CSUF took a two-goal lead into the break with a strike in the 44th. Five minutes into the second half Samantha Rodriquez put the Bengals on the board on a cross from Cassidy Kaumeyer, but less than a minute later the Titans responded to restore the two goal margin. Vanessa Cabilan scored from inside the six on a ball from Maria Sanchez in the 63rd, but ISU were unable to complete the rally as Fullerton added one more for the win in the 75th. MORE [+]
CSU Bakersfield 1 :: 1 Eastern Washington
The two sides were locked in a stalemate for 86 minutes before a wild finish. the visiting Roadrunners finally broke the deadlock in the 87th minute and looked to be headed for a win when Chloe Williams scored on a through ball from Alexis Stephenson (Pasco, WA) with just 10 seconds remaining on the clock. MORE [+]
The Vandals dominated the contest and took control early. Clara Gomez and Kavita Battan combined to set up Olivia Baggerly in the 20th minute for the opening goal and then Gomez got on the end of an Elexis Schlossarek free kick six minutes later to find Kayla Watanabe. Gomez had a hand in all three goals, working with Baggerly in the 77th to put Kaitlyn Joy behind the defense for the third of the game. Amanda Poertner made seven saves for the shutout. MORE [+]
Montana 1 :: 0 Nevada
A goal from Mackenzie Akins was all the Griz needed for the victory, and it came just 93 seconds into the game on a great individual effort. She drove in from 30 yards out, beating a defender, and scored from the top of the area. The defense limited the hosts to just three shots on goal, allowing Kailey Norman to get the shutout in her return between the posts after taking a ball to the head the week prior. MORE [+]
UC Davis 1 :: 0 Portland State
Weber State 1 :: 0 Westminster
Sacramento State 0 :: 1 Pacific
Arizona 4 :: 0 Northern Arizona
Southern Utah 0 :: 2 Cal State Northridge
Fresno State 0 :: 3 Oregon State
San Jose State 1 :: 1 UC Santa Barbara
Utah State 0 :: 1 Utah Valley
Colorado State 1 :: 2 Grand Canyon
UNLV 0 :: 6 Arizona State
Saturday, August 29
San Diego State 0 :: 2 California
Sunday, August 30
Montana 2 :: 6 Utah Valley
An early 2-1 lead for the Grizzlies was not enough as the Wolverines rolled off five unanswered goals for the win. Dani Morris put Montana on the board first four minutes in on a ball from Mary Gintz, but the hosts answered less than two minutes later. Jamie Simon and Jenna Castillo combined in the 18th to find Mackenzie Akins for another go-ahead goal, but the Wolverines again responded quickly, scoring in the 23rd. The hosts took the lead for the first time in the 35th and didn't look back, added three more in the second half. MORE [+]
UC Davis 3 :: 0 Eastern Washington
Overtime Friday and a trip to Portland proved too much to keep the unbeaten run going. The Eagles stood firm for the first 45, but the Aggies broke through less than two minutes into the second half and tallied twice more en route to the shutout win. MORE [+]
Idaho State 2 :: 1 Westminster
Maria Sanchez scored both goals for the victory to give her four on the year through as many games. She put the Bengals on the board against the DII newcomers (formerly NAIA) in the 21st minute on a breakaway created by Nikolina Musto and Vanessa Cabilan. The Griffins, though, were tough to put away and forced the match into overtime with a 25-yard strike from Madison Roemer that snuck in under the crossbar in the 83rd minute. Just over two minutes into extra time, however, Musto again found Sanchez with a through ball for the winner. MORE [+]
Washington State 2 :: 1 Boise State
The Broncos put up quite a fight against the Cougars, outshooting the visitors 14-9 on the day, but Washington State kept its record clean. Grace Hancock returned home to Boise and sent a shot off the crossbar in the 17th minute that Cara Wegner used to put the visitors in front. The Broncos, though, answered when Brooke Heidemann (Meridian, ID) connected with Michelle Reed for the equalizer in the 34th. The Cougs netted early in the second half to move back in front when Nicolle Marlow knocked it in from 15 yards off a ball from Kourtney Guetlein in the 53rd. MORE - BSU [+] -- WSU [+]
Northern Colorado 1 :: 0 Southeast Missouri State
Southern Utah 2 :: 4 UC Riverside
South Dakota 0 :: 4 North Dakota
San Jose State 2 :: 1 Sacramento State
UNLV 1 :: 0 Northern Arizona
Weber State 1 :: 0 Grand Canyon
Wyoming 0 :: 0 Denver
Pittsburgh 1 :: 0 Colorado College
Houston 0 :: 2 Utah State
New Mexico 0 :: 4 Colorado
Fresno State 0 :: 1 Oregon
San Jose State 2 :: 1 Sacramento State
UNLV 1 :: 0 Northern Arizona
Thursday, September 3
Idaho State 1 :: 4 New Mexico
The hosts grabbed the lead seven minutes into the contest and did not let up. Korynn Blanksma (Wenatchee, WA) set up the second Lobos goal in the final minute of the half and New Mexico added two more in the second half before Meaghan Bare (Coeur d'Alene, ID) took advantage of a turnover to spoil the shutout in the 85th minute. MORE [+]
Friday, September 4
Washington State 1 :: OT :: 0 Montana
The Grizzlies limited the chances in the first half for the unbeaten Cougars, who only put one shot on frame in the first half. Ultimately, Montana took the contest all the way to overtime when a ball in the box resulted in Kaitlyn Johnson going down for a foul as she and Tess Brenneman (Kalispell, MT) battled for the ball. The resulting penalty was put away by Kailiana Johnson for the victory with just seconds remaining in the first overtime session. MORE - UM [+] -- WSU [+]
Idaho 0 :: 1 Boise State
The in-state foes battled for an hour before the Broncos found the back of the net via Michelle Reed, who knocked in a loose ball inside the box. Amanda Poertner made four saves for the Vandals while Janelle Flores earned the shutout with six stops. MORE - UI [+] -- BSU [+]
Hawaii 0 :: 1 Portland State
Weber State 3 :: 1 New Mexico State
Green Bay 2 :: 1 North Dakota
Sacramento State 3 :: 2 CSU Bakersfield
Drake 1 :: 2 Northern Colorado
Alabama State 0 :: 6 Northern Arizona
Colorado State 0 :: 1 St Mary's
Utah State 1 :: 2 Iowa
Forehead State 0 :: 1 Wyoming
Nevada 0 :: 1 UC Irvine
Iowa State 3 :: 0 Colorado College
Utah Valley 3 :: 4 UNLV
San Diego State 0 :: 1 Arizona
Fairleigh Dickinson 3 :: 2 Air Force
Cal State Northridge 2 :: 1 Fresno State
Sunday, September 6
Boise State 1 :: 1 Idaho State
Though they have yet to be shutout, the Bengals picked up just their second positive result of the season with a 73rd minute penalty converted by Maria Sanchez that tied things up. The Broncos took the lead in the 22nd minute when a cross from Kayla Tucker was finished by Baylee Blaser (Boise, ID). Sheridan Hapsic had to make 13 saves to keep ISU in the match as the Broncos had 14 shots on goal to the Bengals' six. MORE - ISU [+] -- BSU [+]
Iowa 0 :: 1 Montana
Facing a second unbeaten side on the weekend, the Grizzlies handed the visiting Hawkeyes their first loss of the year on a goal in the 73rd minute when McKenzie Warren knocked it in after several tries. An Aspen Peifer header off the post set up the tally, but Warren had to battle for the finish amidst several Iowa defenders. Kailey Norman made eight saves for the shutout. MORE [+]
Oakland 1 :: 2 Northern Arizona
Omaha 1 :: 1 North Dakota
Fairleigh Dickinson 2 :: 0 Northern Colorado
Utah Valley 1 :: 2 Southern Utah
Sacramento State 1 :: 3 UC Santa Barbara
Weber State 0 :: 3 UTEP
Portland State 0 :: 6 Long Beach State
Forehead State 1 :: 3 Air Force
Cincinnati 2 :: 1 Colorado College
Drake 1 :: 3 Wyoming
Utah State 1 :: 1 Gonzaga
Colorado State 0 :: 1 UC Irvine
UNLV 0 :: 1 Cal State Fullerton
Nevada 0 :: 1 St Mary's
Cal Poly 4 :: 0 Fresno State
Florida Gulf Coast 0 :: 1 San Diego State
Idaho 1 :: 2 Eastern Washington
Despite having the better of play in the early stages, back-to-back goals from the Eagles changed the complexion of the match. Chloe Williams finished off a free kick with a great effort in the 24th and then set up Delaney Romero with a nice ball just over a minute later to double the lead. Kavita Battan made a great play just past the hour mark to cut the deficit in half, but it was all the Vandals would find on the day. INWsn REPORT [+]
Thursday, September 10
Idaho State 1 :: 5 Utah Valley
The trip to Utah did not start well for the Bengals as they found themselves down two in the opening 17 minutes and four by the break. Maria Sanchez set up Samantha Rodriquez in the 53rd minute, but UVU answered in the 71st for the four-goal win. MORE [+]
Cal State East Bay 1 :: 3 Sacramento State
Utah State 0 :: 1 BYU
Friday, September 11
Purdue 3 :: 1 Montana
A week after after two great performances against unbeaten sides Washington State and Iowa, the Grizzlies were unable to keep it going. The Boilermakers improved to 5-1-0 thanks to three goals in the first 35 minutes, two by Hannah Leinert. Ashlee Pedersen (Spokane, WA) attempted to spark a rally when she put away the rebound of a Mackenzie Akins penalty kick that went off the post 11 minutes into the second half, but that was all they could muster. MORE [+]
Arkansas State 0 :: 2 Idaho
The Vandals used a pair of early goals to get back in the win column. Int he 17th minute Madison Moore and Clara Gomez combined to flick the ball onto Alyssa Lloyd, who nodded it home for the opener. Eight minutes later Battan and Elexis Schlossarek put the ball into the area, where Olivia Baggerly put away the second. Amanda Poertner made three saves for the clean sheet as Idaho dominated the second half with a 13-4 shot advantage. MORE [+]
Utah 1 :: 1 Boise State
The visitors took the lead eight minutes before the break when a shot rebounded off the post and was knocked in from about three yards out, and it looked like it was going to be enough to stand as the winner until the Broncos earned a penalty in the final minute of the contest when Michelle Reed was fouled trying to score. Hailey DeVries converted from the spot for the draw. MORE [+]
Eastern Washington 2 :: 1 Valparaiso
Outshot 13-6, goalkeeper Mallory Taylor needed to make nine saves to keep the Eagles in the match as it nearly went the distance. Williams set up the go-ahead goal as the two sides played to a stalemate just short of a full hour, finding Allison Raniere for the tally. Three minutes later the hosts tied things up and the two sides resumed their stalemate until Williams scored 25 yards out with less than two minutes remaining in overtime. MORE [+]
North Dakota - North Dakota State
Northern Arizona 1 :: 2 Marquette
Colorado College 2 :: 2 Weber State
Northwestern 2 :: 1 Colorado State
Kansas 1 :: 2 Wyoming
St Mary's 1 :: 1 San Jose State
New Mexico 0 :: 1 Minnesota
Nevada 2 :: 1 UC Davis
Air Force 0 :: 3 Oregon
Saturday, September 12
UNLV 0 :: 2 BYU
Sunday, September 13
Creighton 1 :: 0 Montana
Despite being outshot 12-4 in the second half, the Grizzlies kept the visitors at bay with the exception of a corner kick eight minutes into the period that Creighton made stand for the game-winner. MORE [+]
Eastern Washington 4 :: 2 Green Bay
Williams continued her hot streak with two more goals for the Eagles on their trip through the midwest. After falling behind three minutes in she tied things up at the half-hour mark on a ball from Hoekstra and then put the Eags in front five minutes later. Devan Talley scored what proved to be the game-winner on a ball from Kiana Hafferty in the 58th and just over a minute after the hosts scored, Lexi Klinkenberg restored the two-goal advantage courtesy of Raniere. MORE [+]
Weber State 3 :: OT :: 2 Boise State
Despite leading the game twice, the Broncos found themselves on the losing side of the things after a penalty kick in overtime settled matters in the 103rd minute. The Broncos got on the board first when a Heidemann free kick rebounded to Eva Herrera five minutes before intermission only to see the Wildcats answer in the final minute of the period. Heidemann set up another strike at the hour mark, working with Laura Buck for the go-ahead goal. Again, though, the visitors had a flair for the dramatic with another last-minute goal. This time a free kick with 20 seconds remaining was perfectly placed upper corner from 20 yards to send the match to extra time. MORE [+]
The Vandals gave one-loss Memphis quite a scare on their own turf. The hosts had a two-goal lead after just eight minutes, but Battan was an offensive force on the day. She combined with Baggerly to put Kayla Watanabe through for a chip over the goalkeeper in the 18th. Then she scored herself in the 24th minute on a ball from Schlossarek to tie it up. The Tigers, though, reclaimed the lead immediately two minutes later. Battan, however, was not done, beating the goalkeeper near post on a ball from Watanabe in the 54th minute to set things at three each. The two sides then remained deadlocked until a free kick in the 102nd minute went off the post and was put away on the rebound to give Memphis the victory. MORE [+]
Idaho State 3 :: 5 Utah State
The Bengals held a two-goal advantage twice, but for the second consecutive game allowed five goals as the Aggies rallied for the win. A Sanchez shot 14 minutes in came off the post to Esmeralda Nunez for the opening score before she went on to found the back of the net twice. Sanchez converted a turnover into a 15-yard score in the 21st minute and put the Bengals back up by two in the 57th with a header. Two minutes later, though, it all began to unravel as Utah State scored the first of four. Then the Aggies tied it up in the 66th on a goal from Jessica Brooksby, who went on to add two more for a game-deciding hat-trick. MORE [+]
Loyola 0 :: 3 Northern Arizona
Defender Ashlynn Curnow (Boise, ID) set up the final goal in the 88th minute of the contest.
South Dakota 1 :: 3 Southern Utah
Fresno State 1 :: 0 Sacramento State
North Dakota 0 :: 2 Northern Iowa
Colorado State 3 :: 1 Northern Colorado
Air Force 0 :: 1 Portland State
New Mexico 0 :: 1 Michigan State
Kansas 2 :: 1 Colorado College
UTEP 1 :: 0 Nevada
San Jose State 1 :: 2 Cal Poly
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