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Pruitt Lifts Utes In Shootout Over Aztecs For MWC Championship
Utah, with the No. 4 seed, was the lowest seeded team to ever win the MWC soccer championship.
Nov. 6, 2004 Box Score in PDF Format
PROVO, Utah - Utah's Erin Pruitt, a senior midfielder from San Dimas, Calif., got the winning goal on the final penalty kick to give the University of Utah a shootout victory over SDSU, and the 2004 Mountain West Conference Women's Soccer Championship trophy, Saturday at BYU's South Stadium.
After the 90 minutes of regulation, plus two 10-minute sudden death overtime periods, Utah and San Diego State were knotted at one apiece. SDSU took a 2-1 lead in the shootout, then Utah made two straight to tie it at 3-3. Pruitt then had the final kick for Utah. Her kick sailed to the far right side of the goal, past SDSU's Sophia Perez, for Utah's second consecutive MWC tournament championship trophy. Utah, with the No. 4 seed, was the lowest seeded team to ever win the MWC soccer championship.
"I'm really just proud of the players and the coaches and everyone involved with the team just for hanging in there," said Utah head coach Rich Manning. "This season has definitely been a character test for us. We've established a standard for our team, going to the playoffs three years in a row. Being able to win the conference tournament and go to the NCAA Tournament in a year when it seems like things have been rolling against us is great for this team."
Just a little over two minutes into the second half of play, University of Utah's Hailey Marsh got a pass from teammate Emily Campbell and shot the ball in for the 1-0 lead. Just 10 minutes later, SDSU's Tiphanie Elliott tied up the score on a header from Amanda Swiader.
The score would remain tied for the rest of the afternoon as both teams failed to score on numerous scoring opportunities. The Aztecs had a five to four advantage in shots on goal in the first half, but were only able to get two more in the second half. They had no cornerkick opportunities. SDSU ends the year with an 8-7-6 record.
"This was a very successful season for us," said Aztecs coach Mike Giuliano. "We came up short in the end, but it will be a great preparation for the future. Hopefully, we'll be here more often in the future. I'm also extremely pleased with Sophia's MVP award. She made saves that I've rarely seen by a college keeper on any level. She kept us in the game."
Utah, who improved their record to 13-5-3, will represent the Mountain West Conference in the 2004 NCAA Women's Soccer Championships. The bracket will be announced on Monday afternoon.
2004 Mountain West Conference Women's Soccer Championship All-Tournament Team Kiley Jones, M, Fr., Utah
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