Sloppy defense doomed Cougars soccer to its first loss against Idaho since ’99

For the first time since 1999, the Idaho Vandals (1-0) beat the Washington State Cougars (0-1) on Thursday evening. The Vandals built up a significant possession advantage and took advantage of sloppy positioning by the WSU defense to score three goals in the first 10 minutes of the new season in route to a 3-0 win for Idaho.

Idaho’s first goal of the game was emblematic of the issues on defense that would plague Washington State throughout the first half. Off an inbound pass 90 seconds into the match, forward Georgia Whitehead received the inbound pass before she turned around one of two Cougars defenders and sent a white hot pass parallel to the end line towards the goal.

A moment during a soccer match between Idaho and WSU, showcasing players contending for the ball near the sideline, with spectators in the background. — (Screenshot from the Pac 12 YouTube broadcast)

There were three Cougar defenders between Whitehead and goalkeeper Ashlyn Dvorak and none of them were able to intercept the pass. Dvorak then committed to collecting the loose ball but misplayed it as she fell to the grass with the only person near it was senior forward Calli Chiarelli. The senior had sliced through two defenders to put herself in position to take control of the loose ball as none of the Cougs in the area seemed ready for her to do that.

A soccer match between Idaho and WSU with players in action near the goal, showing a pivotal moment in the game. — (Screenshot from the Pac 12 broadcast)

Chiarelli was easily able to sink the shot into the empty net. She took advantage of a WSU defense that let her get behind them and left its keeper with no one able to help take possession after the loose ball once Dvorak had overextended herself when she committed to the pass.

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When the Vandals scored their second goal, the Washington State defense initially did a much better job of packing passing lanes. This forced Miranda Goldner to kick it out to Alyssa Hamilton once the Cougs started to close in on her.

Soccer match between Idaho and WSU, with Idaho leading 1-0. Players from both teams positioned on the field, with one player from Idaho controlling the ball. — (Screenshot from the Pac 12 broadcast)

Hamilton had the ball for roughly a second before she recognized an opportunity that had been created by Hallie Prinos-Grumbach as the defender took advantage of the Cougars focus on the ball movement to get behind them. With the only Coug behind her being Dvorak, it left Prino-Gumbach with the perfect opportunity for the wide open header into the corner of the net.

A soccer match between Idaho and WSU with Idaho leading 1-0, showcasing players in action on the field. — (Screenshot from the Pac 12 broadcast)

Initially, Pinos-Gumbach’s goal was ruled off sides by the officials. But a fairly quick video review showed that she was onside and had just been left open in front of the goal by the WSU defense.

A college soccer match in progress, showing players on a grassy field. Several players in white and black uniforms are positioned near the ball, with a focus on an active play. The background features a crowd and seating area. — (Screenshot from the Pac 12 broadcast)

The third and final goal of the night, once again, had the scorer get behind the Washington State defense which left them in excellent position to score.

Washington State picked off a pass, then immediately turned the ball over to Idaho. The Vandals quickly got it at the feet of Pinos-Gumbach as she was surrounded by nothing but grass; and she would be surrounded by nothing but grass as the Cougs were slow to apply pressure to her. This left the sophomore plenty of time to examine the pitch as the play developed.

A soccer match in progress between Idaho and WSU, with Idaho leading 2-0. Players are actively engaged on the field, with a referee overseeing the game. — (Screenshot from the Pac 12 broadcast)

The sophomore immediately spotted Hamilton when she started to break towards the corner of the goal. Pinos-Gumbach then lobbed the kick over the Washington State players to get it to the open midfielder with.

A soccer match in progress between Idaho and WSU, with Idaho leading 2-0. The scene shows players on the field, with one highlighted in a yellow circle.

In the first ten minutes, WSU’s defense repeatedly allowed the Idaho attack to get loose behind it. A lack of pressure from the defense meant that the Vandals had plenty of time to read the pitch and determine how the play had started to develop and make the pass that led to goals. This led to three relatively easy goals that dug the Cougs into a hole that they wouldn’t be able to dig out of.

The good news is that the home side’s defense did a much better job at limiting the Vandals’ opportunities in the second half, and kept the road side in front of them.

But the bad news is that the offense struggled to consistently generate the same kind of scoring opportunities. Washington State may have out shot the Vandals 8-3 in the second half, but none of them were close enough to the net to forced goal keeper Paula Flores to make a save – all three of her saves were in the first half.

Last season’s draw in Moscow, Idaho broke a streak of 14 straight Cougar wins and this years victory for Idaho broke a 15 match unbeaten streak for WSU. The three goals the Vandals scored on Thursday evening were the most they’ve scored in the 17 match history of the Battle of the Palouse.

Next up for the Cougs, they host South Florida in Pullman on Sunday, August 15th at 6:00 PM.