Eagles’ season ends in conference final

In a heated matchup, Utah State University Eastern faced off against the Snow College Badgers, with USUE emerging victorious in a closely contested game, winning 2-1. Snow College took the lead early when Mucioko Banza scored at the 15-minute mark with an unassisted goal. However, this did not deter the Eagles. Vinicius De Silva found the back of the net 28 minutes into the match, with an assist from Osvaldo Escalona, tying the game at 1-1. De Silva’s goal ignited the crowd and sent a message to the Badgers.

The second half of the game was marked by intense action from both the offensive and defensive sides. The Eagles proved they weren’t going down without a fight, as Aleksandar Mihajlovic scored in the 87th minute on a goal assisted by Aiden McMullin. This goal would prove to be the game-winner as the Eagles secured a 2-1 victory. The No. 15 Eagles will now play their final regular-season game against the undefeated No. 2 Salt Lake Community College at home on Saturday, October 21st.

On Saturday, Oct.21, USU Eastern faced Salt Lake Community College in a closely contested battle. The first half saw no goals from either team, with strong defensive performances, particularly from Eagles’ goalie Mathias Del Lago. The game heated up in the second half when the Bruins’ Sawyer Heaton scored in the 69th minute on an assist from Lewis Duncan, securing a 1-0 victory for the Bruins. This marked the end of the regular season for the Eagles, who will now prepare for the conference tournament, beginning with a match against the College of Southern Nevada on Oct. 26.

On Oct. 26, the conference tournament kicked off as Utah State Eastern University faced the College of Southern Nevada and secured an impressive 5-3 win. The Eagles wasted no time, with William Mugisha scoring the opening goal in the 4th minute, assisted by Osvaldo Escalona, giving them a 1-0 lead. Ten minutes later, Austin Tesch extended the Eagles’ lead to two, scoring in the 15th minute. William Mugisha continued to shine, securing his second goal in the 25th minute with an assist from teammate Casey Stracher.

CSN managed to get on the scoreboard toward the end of the first half, with Charles Rendon scoring on an assist from Enrique Reyes-Avila. In the second half, the Eagles struck first with a penalty kick from Eagle Ramon Nunez, increasing their lead to 4-1. CSN responded a minute later with another goal from Enrique Reyes-Avila, making it 4-2. Charles Rendon of CSN scored again, narrowing the gap to just one goal. However, the Eagles sealed the game in the 88th minute as Vinicius De Silva scored with an assist from Jonah Garcia, securing the Eagles’ first win of the conference tournament, with a final score of 5-3. The Eagles will now face Salt Lake Community College on October 28th.

Utah State University faced the Salt Lake Bruins in their second game of the conference tournament on Saturday, Oct. 28, but they fell short of a win. The first half was dominated by solid defense from both teams, resulting in a 0-0 score. In the second half, the Bruins took charge, scoring three goals, all from Bruin players: Sawyer Heaton, Larry Noel, and Francisco Tita, giving them a 3-0 lead. The Eagles managed to score in the 86th minute, courtesy of Casey Stracher. However, the Eagles ultimately fell short, losing 3-1 to the undefeated Bruins.

The Eagles finished the season with an overall record of 11-3-1 and 9-3-1 in conference play. Eastern finished second in the conference for the second consecutive season.