For the second weekend in a row, No. 5 seeded BYU advanced in the NCAA women’s soccer tournament on penalty kicks following a 1-1 draw. This time the Cougars took down No. 4 seed UCLA Friday night at Stanford, topping the Bruins 4-2 in the shootout and propelling BYU to its sixth Sweet 16 appearance in its last 10 seasons. Much like the week before, BYU junior goalkeeper Chelsea Peterson came up big for the Cougars in penalty kicks Friday. Peterson, who became BYU’s starter less than a month ago, blocked the first two UCLA attempts. The Cougars, on the other hand, scored on all of their tries, shortening the shootout to just four attempts by each team. Despite being outshot on the night 27-17 and giving up 10 corner kicks, BYU kept pace with the Bruins, using an impressive defensive effort to claim the upset. The two sides met earlier this season in August at South Field, the Cougars earning the victory on a first half penalty kick from junior forward Ellie Walbruch. The squads kept each other scoreless the rest of the way that evening, playing to a 1-0 final. They picked up right where they left off in August on Friday, blanking each other in the first half. It marked just the 10th goal the Bruins had given up all season, but the fourth consecutive match that the Los Angeles school had allowed a score. In the 81st minute, however, UCLA redshirt senior midfielder Emma Egizii equalized, recovering a Cougar deflection in the box off her own shot before drilling a second-touch goal inside the far post. Despite BYU’s struggles to control the ball for the better portion of the rest of the match, the Cougars did just enough to put themselves back into another shootout. Following the shootout, the Bruins’ season comes to an end. They finished the year at 12-5-4. In contrast, BYU continues its improbable run and remains undefeated in its last six matches, having won the Big 12’s postseason championship earlier this month before advancing past Utah State last week in the first round of the NCAA tournament. BYU will look to continue its upward trend as it moves onward, awaiting the winner of No. 1 seed Stanford and No. 8 seed Alabama later Friday night. Whichever team they play, the Cougars’ Sweet 16 matchup is set to begin Monday afternoon at 2 p. m. MST.
https://www.deseret.com/sports/2025/11/21/byu-cougars-ucla-bruins-ncaa-soccer-second-round-recap/