Boise State women’s soccer team returns to Mountain West title match with shootout win
Even the referee was confused when goalkeeper Sydney Smith walked from her place beside the goal to line up for a penalty kick.
But Boise State women’s soccer coach Jim Thomas knew exactly what he was doing.
“There’s a really easy thing to do in coaching that people get away from,” Thomas said. “When it’s tough and it’s hard and you’re not sure, you lean on the people that you’ve been in it with the longest.”
Fifth-year senior Aubree Chatterton scored the Broncos’ only goal, and fellow senior Smith converted a penalty kick and stopped one in sixth-seeded Boise State’s upset of No. 2 Fresno State in the Mountain West Tournament semifinals Thursday at the Boas Soccer Complex. The Broncos and Bulldogs played to a 1-1 draw through 90 minutes of regulation and two 10-minute overtimes, setting up Boise State’s 6-5 shootout victory.
Boise State (12-6-3) will face top-seeded New Mexico (13-4-2) in the tournament championship game at noon Saturday, with a spot in the NCAA Tournament on the line. The Broncos are the first No. 6 seed to advance to the title match in conference history.
“She’s literally a beast, and she’s ranked No. 1 for a reason,” Chatterton said of Smith. “It’s so awesome that she could just go out there and make one for us as one of the top five and also make the biggest save of the game and help us win.”
After both teams were perfect through five rounds, Smith stopped the shot of Fresno State freshman Kaelyn Miller, and the pressure fell to a Boise State freshman to deliver the win.
Michaela Justiniani handled the weight of the moment with ease, tucking her shot just inside the left post to seal the upset. Justiniani immediately turned and ran toward her teammates as they rushed the field in celebration.
“It was definitely really nerve-racking, but I knew in the sixth possession it was something that could come down to me, and I just took a deep breath,” Justiniani said. “We’ve been practicing (PKs) all week, so I just wanted to do what I practiced.”
Smith had been practicing all week, too, but primarily in goal. She said she attempted one penalty kick during practice Wednesday, and her shot in the second round was the Caldwell High graduate’s first in a shootout since she was in elementary school.
“I think that’s part of the job, though, is trying to stay calm, and my team needs that,” said Smith, who tied a program record Monday with her 18th career shutout in the first round of the tournament.
Scoring penalty kicks for the Broncos, in order, were sophomore Morgan Miles, Smith, junior Morgan Stone, senior Abby Bivens, sophomore Jocelyn Stephens and Justiniani.
“That’s the first penalty kick shootout in my 23 years of coaching that I’ve ever had be perfect. We didn’t miss one,” Thomas said. “I mean, that never happens. By the time we got to the fourth one, I was like, ‘Man, this is where it happens, you know?’ So I was really, really proud of them executing in a pressure-packed situation.”
Fresno State scored first during a rainy, windy first half when Miller connected on a cross in the 17th minute. Chatterton then netted the equalizer unassisted in the 28th on a curling dart from just inside the 18-yard box.
The Broncos outshot the Bulldogs, 6-3, in the second half, with perhaps their best chance at the go-ahead goal coming in the 78th when Chatterton fed the ball to the feet of junior Grace Kaufman-Fuller, who’s clear shot at the goal was expertly stopped by Fresno State keeper Ella Wilson.
“They just don’t quit, man. There’s dead legs out there. You can see it,” Smith said. “You can see the fatigue, but they just keep pushing, and that’s something about this team that I really love, and that’s what’s gonna get us through.”
The Broncos have been playing in do-or-die mode for more than two weeks, needing to win their final game of the regular season and get help to claim the sixth and final seed in the conference tournament. They’ve now beaten the tournament’s No. 3 and No. 2 seeds, and only No. 1 stands between the Broncos and their second NCAA Tournament appearance in the past three seasons.
The Lobos beat Boise State 1-0 on Oct. 3 in Albuquerque, but this one will be on the Broncos’ home pitch.
“I’m gonna give everything, and all of those girls in there are gonna give everything they have,” Smith said. “We really do have nothing to lose, like we’ve been saying, and we’re not done yet. We’re really excited to get back out there on Saturday.”
Note: Saturday’s championship match will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network, which is available online at themw.com/watch.
This story was originally published November 4, 2021 at 9:34 PM.
