Season Primer: Utah State Soccer Looks To Build On Stellar 2024 Campaign

Utah State soccer’s 2024 campaign was a historic endeavor – one of the most successful seasons in program history, ending with an 18-1-5 record and a major overhaul to the record book.

The Aggies built on what was a successful 2023 season the year before and soared to new, unprecedented heights. Manny Martins' group ran it back as Mountain West tournament champions to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row, hosting a game for the first time ever. The Aggies were one of just two teams in the country with only one loss, and they ranked as high as seventh in the United Soccer Coaches top 25 poll.

In their pursuit of such a successful campaign, the Aggies broke just about every record in the book. Last year’s new record book entries include 18 wins, 62 goals, 65 assists, 189 points, 202 shots on goal and 15 shutouts. Utah State outscored its opponents by a whopping 62-14 margin, and the resulting score differential of 48 was easily greater than not only the program's scoring margin record, but the previous record for total goals of 40.

The Aggies finished ranked among the nation’s best in several statistical categories: On a national level, Utah State checked in at No. 20 in RPO, No. 4 in total assists, No. 5 in total goals and scoring differential, No. 6 in scoring offense, No. 8 in assists per game, No. 9 in shutout percentage, No. 10 in goals-against average and No. 23 in shots per game.

Now, with much of that team back for another season in Logan, Martins and Co. are looking for even more in 2025.

Conference Outlook/Opponent Preview

It’s an odd year for the Mountain West. With Utah State and a handful of others gearing up to leave for the Pac-12 after this year, major change was on the horizon. But, with the late and unexpected addition of Grand Canyon University, the Mountain West already looks different. 

Still, the Aggies are projected by the league's coaches to win the conference title once again, receiving 128 points and six first-place votes in the preseason poll. Behind them, Boise State was picked to finish second with three first-place votes and 121 points, trailed by Colorado State and San Diego State, each with one first-place vote. New Mexico picked up two first-place votes, but was somehow picked to finish seventh.

Heavy is the head that wears the crown, and as the reigning champs, Utah State will have a target on its back during conference play, and not just for the preseason poll. Recent success, high expectations, preseason hype, a long list of accolades and Utah State’s imminent departure to a new conference have all combined to make the Aggies a trophy target for the rest of the conference, and a dance card filled with in-state rivals and rematches ensures that the target will stay there all season. 

The Aggies have a tough non-conference schedule headlined by a heavy four-game Big 12 slate that features some of the best teams the league has to offer, all of which are hungry for revenge – BYU, Kansas, Texas Tech and Utah.

Texas Tech is ranked No. 25 in the preseason top 25 and BYU is receiving votes, while Kansas won the Big 12 last year. This time around in the preseason polling, Texas Tech was picked to finish second in the Big 12 and secured two first-place votes. Not far behind was BYU, which was picked to finish third with one first-place vote, while Kansas checked in at No. 5 and Utah rounded out this quartet at No. 9. In total, 13 of the 27 players selected to the Big 12 preseason team are on Utah State’s schedule, and other than Utah, each team has multiple entrants. 

The Aggies fared well against Big 12 foes last season with three straight wins, starting with back-to-back shutouts over Utah and Texas Tech, then a 2-1 win over 16th-ranked BYU on the road. Utah State hopes to replicate that success this year. 

The Aggies start their season with a pair of road games, first with a trip to Washington State in Pullman on Aug. 14, then to Stockton on Aug. 21 for a bout with Pacific.

Within Utah State’s program, there's already a lot of familiarity with the former program, but there’s about to be a lot more when the Aggies join the Pac-12. Martins coached against Washington State quite a bit when he was at Oregon, and more recently, when the Aggies tied 0-0 with the Cougars last year.

Then, the Aggies play another rematch of last year when they square off with Pacific. Last year’s game stands in stark contrast to their low-scoring bout with the Cougars. Utah State, ranked 11th at the time, went on a tirade, beating the Tigers 9-3 to reach a perfect 7-0 record.

Utah State’s home opener is an Aug. 24 matinee against the defending Big 12 champions. It will be the first official game on the new and improved playing surface at the Bell, but the all-new lights will have to wait for their debut until Aug. 28, when Utah comes up north. Utah State is on a two-game winning streak against the Utes with back-to-back 2-0 shutouts, both in Salt Lake City.

After Utah comes to Logan, the Aggies will head to Provo. In the last five matchups, Utah State is 3-1-1 against BYU. The Aggies will continue their tour of Utah after that by hosting Weber State on Sept. 11. Last year’s win over the Wildcats gave the Aggies an 8-0 start to the campaign.

Then, it’s onto the rematch with Texas Tech, possibly the toughest team on Utah State’s schedule. The Aggies and Red Raiders have met twice in the past two years and tied 1-1 in that time. The Red Raiders won 3-0 in Lubbock back in 2023, and last year, Utah State won 2-0 in Logan. This year’s matchup takes the Aggies back to Lubbock for an extremely tricky road test.

After the trip to the Lone Star state, the Aggies come back home for one last in-state game against Utah Valley, who they beat in Orem last season in a 3-0 shutout. To close out the non-conference slate, Utah State will be back on the road to play against Portland. At that point in the season, the Aggies will be hoping to be well above .500, and solidifying their rotations before a tough opening to conference play against Colorado State. It’s a tough schedule, but nothing the Aggies can’t handle – and Martins readily acknowledges that perfection isn’t the goal.

“We're going to step into every game with the desire to win,” says Martins. “But, we're going to lose a game at some point. Very rarely do people not lose games. We understand that the mistakes are not going to define us. One result, positive or negative, is not going to define us.”

In the conference, Utah State’s toughest competition will be Boise State, Colorado State and San Diego State. Utah State plays all three, and two of the three on the road. The Aggies miss both GCU and UNLV, picked to finish fifth and sixth, respectively, but will also face New Mexico on the road.

Conference Schedule

vs. Colorado State - Sept. 25

2024 Record: 12-5-4 (7-1-3)

2024 RPI: No. 85

Projected Place: 3rd (one first-place vote)

Players To Watch: 

• Mia Casey (United Soccer Coaches’ 2025 watch list)
• Kaja Dionne 
• Michaela McGowan 

vs. Wyoming - Sept. 28

2024 Record: 4-6-9 (2-3-6)

2024 RPI: No. 212

Projected Place: 8th 

Players To Watch:

• Maddie Burr 
• Alyssa Glover 
• Hadley Linder

at Air Force - Oct. 2

2024 Record: 5-10-3 (1-8-2)

2024 RPI: No. 204

Projected Place: 12th

Players To Watch:

• Jordan Dillingham
• Peyton Ferrell 
• Annika Jost

at Colorado College - Oct. 5

2024 Record: 8-9-3 (4-5-2)

2024 RPI: No. 147

Projected Place: 10th

Players To Watch:

• Kendall Memoly 
• Finley Schoenbeck
• Regan Wallace (United Soccer Coaches 2025 watch list)

vs. Fresno State - Oct. 9

2024 Record: 7-9-3 (2-7-2)

2024 RPI: No. 179

Projected Place: 11th 

Players To Watch:

• Alexis Campbell
• Anaya Shelton
• Ciara Wilson 

at New Mexico - Oct. 16

2024 Record: 7-6-5 (3-5-3)

2024 RPI: No. 192

Projected Place: 7th (two first-place votes)

Players To Watch:

• Nicole Anderson 
• Kennedy Brown 
• Fiona Jenkins 

at San Diego State - Oct. 19

2024 Record: 9-7-4 (6-2-3)

2024 RPI: No. 123

Projected Place: 4th (one first-place vote)

Players To Watch: 

• Grace Goins 
• Alexys Ocampo 
• Katie Senn 

vs. Nevada - Oct. 23

2024 Record: 6-13-2 (4-5-2)

2024 RPI: No. 255

Projected Place: 9th

Players To Watch:

• Maddie Benson 
• Naima Castro 
• Olivia Loomis 

vs. San Jose State - Oct. 26

2024 Record: 1-13-5 (1-7-3)

2024 RPI: No. 295

Projected Place: 13th

Players To Watch:

• Taejah Aitken 
• Paige Fry 
• Leilani White

at Boise State - Oct. 30

2024 Record: 16-4-2 (8-1-2)

2024 RPI: No. 53

Projected Place: 2nd (three first-place votes)

Players To Watch:

• Jillian Anderson 
• Cindy Conner 
• Kaitlyn Slocum
• Avery McBride (United Soccer Coaches 2025 watch list)