POCATELLO, Idaho – Idaho State women's soccer returned to Davis Field Thursday night and battled UC Santa Barbara in a tightly contested non-conference matchup, but a pair of quick Gaucho goals late in the first half helped UCSB come away with a 3-1 victory.

Samantha Fenske scored the Bengals' lone goal from the penalty spot in the 36th minute, while Hannah Wieler came up with a penalty kick save just minutes earlier. Despite the final score, Idaho State finished just one shot behind the Gauchos, 15-14, with both sides putting six attempts on frame.

"I thought we did a lot of things right tonight," Idaho State head coach Dustin Downey said. "You saw us moving the ball, passing, playing, crossing, getting on the back of shots. Soccer's just sometimes frustrating to that point where you can have more of the ball, be a little bit more dangerous, but that's soccer."

The Bengals created the first shot on goal of the night when Stephanie Roper tested UCSB goalkeeper Maddie Buckley in the sixth minute. Saydree Cooke followed with another opportunity in the 25th, forcing Buckley into her second save.

The Gauchos had a chance to take the lead from the penalty spot in the 33rd minute, but Wieler was up to the challenge. Chayse Yu stepped to the spot for UCSB, and the Bengal keeper made the save to keep the match scoreless.

"Hannah came up big tonight, so that was good to see," Downey said. "I thought Hannah was pretty steady in there tonight between the pipes."

Idaho State quickly capitalized on Wieler's stop at the other end.

Following a successful Idaho State challenge, UCSB was whistled for a foul inside the box, sending Fenske to the penalty spot in the 36th minute. The Bengal forward calmly converted to put Idaho State in front, 1-0. Fenske finished the night tied for the team lead with three shots, putting two on goal.

The momentum shifted quickly from there.

Just 1:23 after Idaho State took the lead, Isabella Ong scored for UC Santa Barbara to level the match at 1-1. Only 48 seconds later, Caitlyn Simons struck again, suddenly putting the Gauchos ahead 2-1.

It marked the second consecutive home match in which Idaho State conceded shortly after scoring, something Downey said the Bengals will have to address moving forward.

"We've got to prepare our kids to be better and hungrier after," Downey said. "We're going to have to sit down and figure out what we need to do to change that mentality and try to put some mental fortitude and mental toughness into our training sessions. That can't continue, especially on our home field."

Despite the quick turnaround, Idaho State continued to create opportunities before halftime. Fenske added another attempt, while Cooke and Lena Bonnard each took shots in the final five minutes of the period.

Trailing by just one at the break, Downey saw little reason for major changes after the Bengals had gone toe-to-toe with the Gauchos through the opening 45 minutes.

"I thought we were playing pretty well and there wasn't a whole lot to change," Downey said. "We got some good looks and got some good chances, but other teams are capitalizing on theirs and we're not."

That pressure carried into the second half.

Fenske forced another Buckley save in the 53rd minute, while Devree Bell and Amanda Brayton followed with attempts less than two minutes later. Roper then put another shot on frame in the 56th, but Buckley kept the Bengals from finding the equalizer.

UC Santa Barbara eventually added to its lead in the 67th minute when Hailey Tyacke scored off an Ava Jarolimek assist to make it 3-1.

Bell continued to push for the Bengals, putting an attempt on goal in the 78th minute before recording Idaho State's final shot in the closing seconds.

The Bengals finished with 14 shots, six shots on goal and seven attempts in each half. Roper, Fenske and Bell each recorded three shots, while Roper and Fenske put two apiece on frame.

Downey highlighted Roper, Bonnard, Brayton and Daphne Egelhoff among a number of Bengals who stood out despite the result.

"Stephanie Roper was fantastic tonight," Downey said. "Lena Bonnard was fantastic. Amanda Brayton, Daphne Egelhoff continues to be a staple for us in the back. A lot of good performances across the board tonight."

For Downey, Thursday's match ultimately came down to execution.

"We've got to be better defensively in our box, be better offensively in our box," Downey said. "That's where the games are won and lost, and that's where we won and lost tonight."

The Bengals have faced a challenging non-conference slate through their opening seven matches, and Downey sees those tests as an opportunity for Idaho State to continue building toward Big Sky play.

"We know we're playing a tough schedule, and we want to continue to get better and be ready for conference play," Downey said. "Our big focus is we want to win a conference championship, so hopefully playing some challenging teams in our non-conference schedule helps us prepare for that."
 

Bengal Bites

• Samantha Fenske scored Idaho State's lone goal, converting from the penalty spot in the 36th minute.
• Fenske finished with three shots and two shots on goal.
• Hannah Wieler saved a UCSB penalty kick in the 33rd minute and finished with three saves.
• Idaho State was narrowly outshot 15-14, while the two teams were even with six shots on goal apiece.
• Stephanie Roper, Samantha Fenske and Devree Bell tied for the team lead with three shots apiece.
• Idaho State led 1-0 in the 36th minute before UCSB scored twice in a span of 48 seconds.

Up Next

Idaho State will return to work following Thursday's matchup as the Bengals cap off their home non-conference slate with a Senior Day matchup against Utah State on Thursday, September 17th at 4 p.m. Idaho State is looking to build on the positives from a competitive performance against a UC Santa Barbara squad that improved to 4-1-3 on the season.