No. 19 women’s soccer has yet to surrender a goal at home this season and it’s expected to resume such dominance Thursday against the Utah Valley Wolverines.

Less than a month into the season, both teams have faced their fair share of top opponents, but the Trojans are alone in rising to the occasion. USC boasts a 3-1-0 record highlighted by a 3-1 victory over No. 14 Duke and two shutouts against future Big Ten foes Michigan and Purdue, whereas Utah Valley stands at 2-3-1 after falling to No. 9 Clemson,  No. 1 BYU and Utah.

The brief history between these two teams started in 2021 in a 4-2 USC victory. Junior forward Simone Jackson and junior midfielder Aaliyah Farmer each netted a goal and senior forward Katie Roditis secured a pair of assists. These experienced Trojans have matured into their starting roles and are expected to deliver more damage come Thursday.

Except for longtime Head Coach Chris Lemay, the Utah Valley squad looks almost entirely new. The Wolverine offense is headlined by junior forward Faith Webber who was named Valley Women’s Health Student-Athlete of the Month in August. Webber scored game-winners against Houston Christian and Idaho State, contributing to her five goals.

The Trojans will have the opportunity to showcase the versatility of their attack as the Utah Valley defense has proved permeable, allowing an average of 2.5 goals per game. On the other side of the field, USC’s true freshman goalie Hannah Poulter may experience a few busy moments. The Wolverines have outshot four out of six of its opponents, including BYU. However, under 14% of these shots translate into goals, while USC capitalizes on over 22% of its shots.

The upcoming match marks the midpoint of three consecutive home games described as “a little bit of a breath” by Head Coach Jane Alukonis. The Trojans will use the week of rest between each match to prepare mentally, physically and strategically for the packed month of October.

The Trojans began the three-game stretch last week when they convincingly steamrolled past Purdue 4-0 and improved to 2-0-0 against Big Ten opponents.

Coming off a breakout senior season at Harvard, graduate forward Hannah Griffin punched a long ball from senior defender Zoe Burns into the top of the net less than two minutes into the game. She also had a pass-back assist to junior forward Kayla Colbert, capping off a stellar USC debut. The Trojans finished with four different goal scorers and five players tallying assists — a testament to the effectiveness of Alukonis’ roster framework.

“We take pride in having a smaller roster size so that every player can develop, many players put in a lot of minutes,” Alukonis said. “[We’re] making sure that we get as many people on the pitch as we can, while still keeping the flow of the game.”

This triumphant victory over Purdue points to an interesting benchmark for Alukonis and the Trojans. It’s barely been a year since USC exited West Lafayette with an alarming 3-0 loss, but it’s already flipped the script.

USC has seemingly undergone accelerating growth week in and week out. If the trend continues, this season could be one for the books, but for now, USC has its eyes set on one team, and that’s Utah Valley.

The Trojans will go head-to-head with the Wolverines 3 p.m. Thursday at McAlister Field.