Seventh-Ranked Trojans Blow Past No. 19 Washington State, 3-0, at Home

Thursday, October 24

Los Angeles, Calif.

3:00 PM

USC

12-2-1, 5-2-0

Washington State

10-4-1, 3-3-1

Washington St.

USC

Photo by: Katie Chin

Seventh-Ranked Trojans Blow Past No. 19 Washington State, 3-0, at Home

October 24, 2019 | Women's Soccer, Features

Box Score Highlights Final Stats Box Score

LOS ANGELES – The No. 7 USC women's soccer team got a clean sheet to go along with a two-goal performance by Tara McKeown on Thursday afternoon, blowing past the 19th-ranked Washington State Cougars in a Pac-12 matchup.

McKeown scored twice in the first half for her fourth brace of the season, and Penelope Hocking provided the finishing touches with a goal in the second half to move USC to 12-2-1 on the year and 5-2-0 in Pac-12 play. Washington State falls to 10-4-1 overall and 3-3-1 in conference action.

Kaylie Collins, getting her first start in goal since Aug. 24, made three saves to notch her third shutout of the year and improve to 3-0 in goal for the Trojans. Her biggest moment of the day came in the 66th minute as she made a diving save to preserve the clean sheet.

McKeown got the scoring going early, receiving a long ball and beating the keeper to the far post in the fourth minute. Her second goal would come roughly 12 minutes later when she again collected a long pass, made a few moves and slotted her 14th goal of the season into the back of the net. The junior now has four multi-goal games on the year and is in the top 5 in the country in goals scored.

Hocking ran down a ball from Samantha Bruder in the second half and worked her way past a defender deep inside the box, finishing the shot past a charging WSU keeper for her 10th goal of the year.

GOALS
4' – USC: Tara McKeown (assisted by Natalie Jacobs) – Jacobs played a long pass from the right sideline that got in behind the defense and allowed McKeown to run onto it, take a touch and then beat the keeper back to the right post with her left foot.

17' – USC: Tara McKeown (assisted by Jessica Haidet) – Haidet sent a long ball forward from the Trojans' defensive half, that McKeown was able to control with her head on a full sprint past the defender, then take a touch and beat the keeper to her right side with her right foot.

55' – USC: Penelope Hocking (assisted by Samantha Bruder) – Bruder sent a ball forward for Hocking who received and controlled it, then used a burst of speed to beat the defender near the endline and cut it back, just in time to get the ball on her left foot and shoot it past the charging keeper.

NOTABLE

McKeown now has four braces on the season and leads the team with 14 goals.
McKeown's 14 goals are tied for the second best single-season total in program history with teammate Penelope Hocking (2018) and Courtney Barham (1997). Isabelle Harvey holds the program record with 20 goals in 1996.
Collins has three shutouts in three starts. He shutout on Thursday moved her up to 20 for her career, still good for fourth on the USC career list.
With her 10th goal of the year, Hocking now has double-digit goal totals in both of her first two collegiate seasons.
Hocking and McKeown are tied with 24 career goals, putting the pair sixth on the USC career list.

UP NEXT
The Trojans stay home to take on Washington on Sunday at 1 p.m. It is the final regular-season home game of the year for USC. The Trojans then hit the road for games at Oregon (Thursday) and Oregon State (Sunday) next week.

Hear from Head Coach @Kmcdane after the Trojans' Top 20 win today.#FightOn | #FocUSed pic.twitter.com/3xENBcClIY
— USC Women's Soccer (@USC_WSoccer) October 25, 2019