HILO, HAWAII – Ranked eighth-best in the NCAA Division-II West Region, the Dixie State women’s soccer team looked to complete a difficult task Saturday afternoon – close out a four match swing in Hawaii without a defeat. The Red Storm scored two early goals and never looked back defeating the host Vulcans of Hawaii-Hilo 3-1 in Pacific West Conference play at Amauulu Field to complete a four-game sweep on the islands over the last week.
Dixie State (11-3, 10-0) has won 10 conference matches in-a-row and maintained a six-point lead over second place BYU-Hawaii. The loss for Hawaii-Hilo (3-8-4, 2-4-3) drops them into seventh place in the Pac West.
Mikala Wilkes (Cedar Hills. UT/Lone Peak HS '06) scored both first half goals, her team-leading 10
th and 11
th of the season. In the seventh minute, Wilkes received a pass from
Kelsey Tesoro (Las Vegas, NV/Shadow Ridge) and scored past Hilo goalie Shanna Brown. Ahead 1-0, Wilkes found the net again a second into the 35
th minute to give DSC a 2-0 advantage into halftime.
Abby Monroe (Escondido, CA/Mission Hills) faced four shots in the first half in goal and made one save.
Dixie State kept the pressure on the Vulcans by recording the first nine shots of the second period, but could not extend the lead.
Hilo cut the lead to a goal in the 72nd minute when Emily Lambert caught a pass on her chest and fired a goal assisted by Alysia Salvador. DSC’s defense stepped up and held Hilo to just one shot in the game’s final minutes.
The Storm sealed the win with a
Carly Haycock (Bountiful. UT/Bountiful HS '06) goal in the 87
th minute.
Tonya Smith (Eagle Mountain. UT/Lehi) made one save in net for DSC in the second half.
Dixie State outshot the Vulcans 26-7 in the match led individually by Wilkes (9, 6 SOG) and Haycock (4).
The women’s team makes their return home Friday night October 30 at 7:00pm against Grand Canyon University. The match will mark the first of four at Hansen Stadium to complete the regular season.