PORTLAND, Ore. – San Diego State true freshman Aliyah Utush scored a pair of second-half goals to lead the Aztecs to a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Washington Friday afternoon at Merlo Field on the campus of the University of Portland. SDSU extended its unbeaten streak to four games and improved to 3-1-1. The Huskies, meanwhile, dropped to 4-2.

 

The Aztecs found themselves behind the eight ball just four minutes before halftime when a long bouncing ball made its way down the pitch. The next thing SDSU knew, Washington’s Kimberly Keever was angling her shot to the far post from seven yards out that found the back of the net.

 

SDSU came out of the locker room with a ton of energy and it showed on the field as they controlled the ball and had the Huskies on their heels. The Aztecs were finally rewarded for their effort when Kelsey Booth stole the ball from Washington and passed it to Utush, who finished the chance from eight yards away. The assist was Booth’s first of 2014.

 

The score remained level for much of the second half with San Diego State continuing to pressure the Huskies. With the clock nearing 90 minutes, Utush converted a corner-kick opportunity from seven yards out in the 87^th minute to propel SDSU to a 2-1 advantage. On the scoring play, assists were given to Ashley Hauke and Meggie Gulczynski. The assists were the duo’s first of the season.

 

Washington did not go down without a fight as a header from Jaclyn Softli forced Aztec goalkeeper Melanie Vaughn to make one of her game-high seven saves. The Huskies then took a shot from the top of the box that was blocked and got off one more attempt from close range from Softli, but her boot sailed high with 41 seconds left. SDSU took it from there to secure its third victory of the season.

 

San Diego State was outshot for the first time this season, 12-8, but earned more corner kicks than Washington, 8-1. Of the Aztecs’ eight corners, seven were in the second half.

 

SDSU returns to action on Sunday, Sept. 14, when it faces the host school, Portland, at 2:30 p.m. PT. Live video, audio and stats will be available courtesy of PortlandPilots.com. All of the live links will also be featured on GoAztecs.com.