LOGAN, Utah – Senior goalkeeper Paige Simoneau had another outstanding afternoon in the net for San Jose State as she tallied her eighth shutout on the season, breaking a tie with Zoe Makrigiannis for the most in a single season in program history.
Simoneau made five saves on 10 shots faced, including two late that preserved the shutout and extended play. With just :29 seconds remaining in regulation, Utah State fired off a shot from outside the box, but Simoneau extended and made a leaping punch to knock the ball up over the net. She made another punch out just 1:30 into the first overtime to keep the Spartans in the mix.
"It's always great to get a shutout on the road and although we didn't play our best offensively, we still showed that we are one of the top teams in the conference defensively," head coach Lauren Hanson said. "Paige made some clutch saves for us and our defense was fantastic. She deserves this recognition."
Despite Simoneau's outstanding defense, the Spartans offense was unable to capitalize on the other end as the game finished in a scoreless tie.
SJSU had several scoring opportunities in overtime, the first of which coming in the 100th minute as Haleigh Wynne fielded a pass inside the box and had her shot blocked. Kiara Parker and Gabriella Hurtado fired shots on goal in the final overtime period, but each were easy saves for Aggies' goalkeeper Grace McGuire.
The Spartans outshot Utah State 14-10 and both teams had five corner kicks.
With the tie, SJSU picked up another huge point in the Mountain West standings and currently sit in second with 19 at 6-2-1. The Spartans will now travel to Boise, Idaho for their toughest test yet against the Mountain West leader Broncos on Sunday. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m. PT.
