Thursday, September 3
Eugene, OR
6:00 PM
University of Oregon
5-0-1, 0-0-0
1
vs
0
Utah
2-3-1, 0-0-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Utah | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oregon | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Photo by: Rob Moseley/GoDucks.com
Late Goal Extends Oregon Soccer's Hot Start
09/03/26 | Women's Soccer
The Ducks continue to blossom under second-year coach Tracy Joyner and beat Utah, 1-0, on Thursday to wrap up nonconference play.
EUGENE, Ore. — From the opening touch Thursday at Papé Field, visiting Utah's bench players were mimicking the sound of a duck call nearly any time an Oregon player touched the ball. In the end, though, it was the Ducks who quacked last.
The UO women completed an unbeaten run through nonconference play with a 1-0 victory over the Utes before 482 fans Thursday evening. Savannah Holley broke through with a goal in the 79th minute, heading in a pass off assists from Ellie Felt and Carly Cormack in support of the shutout by UO keeper Gray Willson and her defense.
The Ducks (5-0-1) extended their best start since 2016 and went unbeaten in nonconference play for the first time since 2021, thanks to Holley's second goal in the last two games.
"We all felt the goal was coming, and it was a great ball from Carly and Ellie," Holley said. … "I just felt like it was a perfect ball, and it was really an easy tap-in."
Oregon now has 17 goals, 14 assists and five wins, surpassing the team's totals from the 2025 season. The Ducks had an 11-8 advantage in shots Thursday, including the only one of the match that found the back of the net.
"We're confident in our goal-scoring ability, but I think the last 30 minutes we decided to like really show up and be us in terms of our identity," second-year UO coach Tracy Joyner said. "We know that we're a really good pressing team, and that kind of gives us some energy. We needed to do that a little bit earlier in the game, but we just kept at them and finally got rewarded."
The Ducks posted their fifth shutout through six games this season. They've yet to allow a goal in the run of play this fall, and they needed Willson to make only three saves Thursday night.
"It honestly starts from the front line all the way back — I think it's our forwards, midfielders, defenders, our goalkeepers. We're on the same page," UO defender Taylor Dever said. "We're all communicating. We train defensive organization in practice, and I think it really has been showing in games."
How It Happened: The Ducks surrendered three shots and three corner kicks in the first half, but needed Willson to make just one save. It was a physical half that saw 10 total fouls and a yellow card assessed to each team, but those duck calls from the Utah bench grew progressively less frequent as Oregon controlled play heading into halftime.
"We're hard to beat," Joyner said. "We're definitely hard to beat, and that's something that is a non-negotiable for us. We don't take plays off, and we're really smart in the back in terms of, we don't want to give away like easy opportunities. And so defensively, just as a team, full unit, we look really, really solid. We're making good decisions, and I'm really proud of them."
Joyner said her team's attack draws energy from the stifling defense, and that proved true on Holley's goal. After a touch by Felt that resulted in her first career assist, Cormack sent a pass from well outside the box to the front of the Utah goal, where Holley slipped behind a defender and flicked a header into the net.
That was Oregon's seventh shot of the second half, while Utah had none since halftime at that point. The Utes fought hard for the equalizer, getting off five shots in the final 10 minutes, but the Ducks were up to the task and Willson had two saves to preserve the shutout.
Now it's on to conference play for Oregon, which will take confidence from its start to the season while knowing the level of competition is about to go up.
"The pressure is going to get higher, but as long as we play our game and keep our confidence — I think that's the biggest thing — and play like a team like we have been, I think we'll do great," Holley said. "We just need to not let the pressure get to us and just play our game, and we'll be good."
Notable: Oregon's 17 goals are the program's most through six games since 30 in 1981. ... Dever's sister, Taytm, started on defense for Utah. Utes head coach Hideki Nakada was an assistant for the Ducks in 2013, and Utes goalkeeper Anna Solomon transferred from Oregon. … The Ducks' eight-match unbeaten streak that began late in 2025 is the program's longest since 2021 and fourth-longest ever. … Oregon has five shutouts in its first six games for the second time ever, and the first since 2011.
Up Next: The Ducks open Big Ten play by hosting Rutgers next Thursday (6 p.m., B1G+).
The UO women completed an unbeaten run through nonconference play with a 1-0 victory over the Utes before 482 fans Thursday evening. Savannah Holley broke through with a goal in the 79th minute, heading in a pass off assists from Ellie Felt and Carly Cormack in support of the shutout by UO keeper Gray Willson and her defense.
The Ducks (5-0-1) extended their best start since 2016 and went unbeaten in nonconference play for the first time since 2021, thanks to Holley's second goal in the last two games.
"We all felt the goal was coming, and it was a great ball from Carly and Ellie," Holley said. … "I just felt like it was a perfect ball, and it was really an easy tap-in."
What a goal from Savannah Holley!!!
— Oregon Ducks Soccer (@OregonSoccer) September 4, 2026
Set up by Ellie Felt and Carly Cormack.
79' Oregon 1, Utes 0#GoDucks pic.twitter.com/1TTZP2t6Hs
Oregon now has 17 goals, 14 assists and five wins, surpassing the team's totals from the 2025 season. The Ducks had an 11-8 advantage in shots Thursday, including the only one of the match that found the back of the net.
"We're confident in our goal-scoring ability, but I think the last 30 minutes we decided to like really show up and be us in terms of our identity," second-year UO coach Tracy Joyner said. "We know that we're a really good pressing team, and that kind of gives us some energy. We needed to do that a little bit earlier in the game, but we just kept at them and finally got rewarded."
The Ducks posted their fifth shutout through six games this season. They've yet to allow a goal in the run of play this fall, and they needed Willson to make only three saves Thursday night.
"It honestly starts from the front line all the way back — I think it's our forwards, midfielders, defenders, our goalkeepers. We're on the same page," UO defender Taylor Dever said. "We're all communicating. We train defensive organization in practice, and I think it really has been showing in games."
How It Happened: The Ducks surrendered three shots and three corner kicks in the first half, but needed Willson to make just one save. It was a physical half that saw 10 total fouls and a yellow card assessed to each team, but those duck calls from the Utah bench grew progressively less frequent as Oregon controlled play heading into halftime.
"We're hard to beat," Joyner said. "We're definitely hard to beat, and that's something that is a non-negotiable for us. We don't take plays off, and we're really smart in the back in terms of, we don't want to give away like easy opportunities. And so defensively, just as a team, full unit, we look really, really solid. We're making good decisions, and I'm really proud of them."
Joyner said her team's attack draws energy from the stifling defense, and that proved true on Holley's goal. After a touch by Felt that resulted in her first career assist, Cormack sent a pass from well outside the box to the front of the Utah goal, where Holley slipped behind a defender and flicked a header into the net.
That was Oregon's seventh shot of the second half, while Utah had none since halftime at that point. The Utes fought hard for the equalizer, getting off five shots in the final 10 minutes, but the Ducks were up to the task and Willson had two saves to preserve the shutout.
Now it's on to conference play for Oregon, which will take confidence from its start to the season while knowing the level of competition is about to go up.
"The pressure is going to get higher, but as long as we play our game and keep our confidence — I think that's the biggest thing — and play like a team like we have been, I think we'll do great," Holley said. "We just need to not let the pressure get to us and just play our game, and we'll be good."
Notable: Oregon's 17 goals are the program's most through six games since 30 in 1981. ... Dever's sister, Taytm, started on defense for Utah. Utes head coach Hideki Nakada was an assistant for the Ducks in 2013, and Utes goalkeeper Anna Solomon transferred from Oregon. … The Ducks' eight-match unbeaten streak that began late in 2025 is the program's longest since 2021 and fourth-longest ever. … Oregon has five shutouts in its first six games for the second time ever, and the first since 2011.
Up Next: The Ducks open Big Ten play by hosting Rutgers next Thursday (6 p.m., B1G+).
Players Mentioned
M
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
M
/ Women's Soccer
F
/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's SoccerTeam Stats
UTA
ORE
Goals
0
1
Shots
8
11
Shots on Goal
3
5
Saves
4
3
Corners
4
1
Fouls
9
10
Scoring Plays
Savannah Holley (2)
Assisted By: Ellie Felt , Carly Cormack
GOAL by ORE Holley, Savannah Assist by Felt, Ellie and Cormack, Carly.
78:25
Game Leaders
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
mid
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
fwd
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Wednesday, September 02
Wednesday, September 02
Wednesday, September 02
Friday, August 28
