It took extra time, but Idaho soccer came out on top against Idaho State in the annual “Battle of the Domes.”
“We knew it was going to be tough,” Idaho Head Coach Jeremy Clevenger said. “In-state rivalry… just to get that confidence up. Anytime you get a win going into the next game is big.”
Idaho entered Friday night’s game with a 3-1-1 record and sat in fourth place in the Big Sky ranking with just four games left on the schedule.
Idaho State had a 1-5 record and tied for ninth with Southern Utah at the bottom of the rankings.
Both sides played with high intensity throughout the game, neither giving anything up with ease — nearly every shot was contested.
But the Vandals and Bengals missed open opportunities when they presented themselves, going scoreless after the full 90 minutes.
Going into overtime, Idaho came out with the momentum. Idaho had the upper hand for the majority of the time of possession and worked the ball deep into Bengal territory.
“I was really happy with the players, the way that they just stayed the course. We missed some really open chances that could have just ended the game, but they just rallied each other, and they just had the belief going into overtime that they were going to win,” Clevenger said.
Sophomore midfielder Taylor Brust put a ball up into the air and right to the feet of Junior forward Myah Merino, who was able to put the ball over the keeper and find the back of the net, scoring the golden goal and giving Idaho the win.
“[Merino] had a break away in the first half, a couple clear cut chances in the second half. I could tell her head was down and the team did a great job of picking her up. She got her chance and she just buried it. Really happy for her to get that goal after the night she had,” Clevenger said.
Idaho moved up in the rankings ahead of Northern Colorado with the win and currently sits in third place.
Idaho will play its Senior night game Sunday for the final home game of the season and against the top ranked team in the conference.
Idaho plays Weber State at 11 a.m. Sunday (Oct. 14) in the Kibbie Dome.
Zack Kellogg can be reached at [email protected].