USC women’s soccer suffered its first home defeat of the season, falling 3-2 to the Utah Valley Wolverines Thursday afternoon.

After securing a dominating 4-0 triumph against Purdue last Thursday, the No. 19 Trojans geared up to host their third home game of the season against Utah Valley at McAlister Field. With a spotless defensive record and having not conceded a single goal at home so far this season, the expectations surrounding the Trojans were high as they approached this matchup.

As both teams settled into their tactics and the kickoff whistle sounded, the cardinal shirts immediately held possession of the ball. Their early dominance was evident when, just a minute into the game, a precise through pass from junior midfielder Aaliyah Farmer set up junior forward Kayla Colbert for a shot on goal, but it was saved by the Wolverines’ junior goalkeeper CJ Graham.

As the game progressed, the Wolverines showcased an aggressive and physical style of play. This aggressive approach culminated six minutes into the match when Wolverine senior midfielder Heather Stainbrook was shown a yellow card for a particularly rough tackle from behind on USC’s junior midfielder Simi Awujo. The physicality of the Wolverines became a focal point of the game, setting a challenging tone for the Trojans throughout.

The scoreboard first saw a change at the 11-minute mark. A tackle by Stainbrook close to the penalty area handed Utah Valley a threatening position. The subsequent cross into the center led to a handball by USC’s graduate defender Kayla Duran, granting the Wolverines a penalty.

As the whistle pierced the air, USC’s freshman goalkeeper Hannah Poulter successfully anticipated the shot’s direction, saving the penalty without much problem. However, the rebound shot from Utah Valley’s junior forward Faith Webber escaped Poulter, landing in the opposite side of the net and handing the Wolverines a 1-0 lead.

Shortly after their goal, Webber was shown a yellow card, followed by another one for redshirt junior forward Manthy Brady just over 30 minutes into the game. This brought Utah Valley’s tally to three yellow cards in the first half alone. Despite these cautions, its pressuring game plan appeared to stifle the Trojans. Driven by the urge to equalize, the Trojans’ offensive efforts were hampered by five offside decisions, one involving a contested goal. As the first half concluded, Utah Valley had registered a total of five shots compared to USC’s three.

“The first half was unacceptable and just was not enough,” said Head Coach Jane Alukonis in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “We got outworked by Utah Valley, and that’s on us.”

The second half began with Wolverine corners and Trojan transition plays. With the two teams going back and forth on both ends of the field, Utah Valley eventually found the opening to increase its lead.

Under pressure from two Wolverines, senior forward Angeles Escobar’s back pass was intercepted by Webber, who found herself in a breakaway against Poulter. She seized this opportunity and extended Utah Valley’s lead to 2-0.

“We knew [Webber] was already their leading goal scorer, but again, it’s just on us, we let her do her thing,” Alukonis said.

Previously honored as a First Team All-Western Athletic Conference member during her sophomore year, Webber secured her hat trick 61 minutes into the match. Following a freekick from Stainbrook, Webber connected on an impressive volley shot to lob it over the cardinal shirt keeper, extending the Wolverines’ lead to 3-0.

With USC urgently seeking a goal, freshman midfielder Florianne Jourde capitalized on a swift pass from senior defender Zoe Burns. Jourde fired the ball perfectly into the top left corner, leaving the opposing goalkeeper with no chance for a save.

The Trojans narrowed the gap to 3-1, and their offensive efforts didn’t stop there.

In the 77th minute, junior midfielder Helena Sampaio threaded a pass to Colbert, who exploited an open space down the left flank. While outpacing her defender, Colbert delivered a precise pass into the box where freshman forward Maribel Flores converted, narrowing the gap for USC to just one goal with less than 20 minutes remaining.

Despite the Trojans ramping up the pressure and consistently threatening in the opponent’s half, the clock proved to be their ultimate adversary. As the 90-minute mark hit, there simply wasn’t enough time for the Trojans to mount a successful comeback.

Despite the disappointing loss, the coaching staff is well aware of the areas to improve heading deeper into the season.

“We think energy and competitiveness was lacking,” Alukonis said. “That’s not who we are at SC and as Trojans, so that will be the emphasis every day of training.”

The women’s soccer team will battle it out with New Mexico State at 3 p.m. at McAlister Field next Thursday.