SUNDAY SOCCER MATINEE VS FRESNO
Washington State soccer concludes a busy Cougar weekend with a noon kickoff against Fresno State, Sunday, Oct. 3 at Lower Soccer Field. The Cougars and Bulldogs have never meet in women’s soccer, marking the inaugural match as member of the new Pac-12 Conference.
LAST TIME ON THE PITCH
The Cougars closed the nonconference schedule with a 2-1 win over visiting Seattle U, exactly two weeks ago, Sept. 16. Isabella Amado scored her first collegiate goal with a near-post strike into the upper netting just 54 seconds into the match. WSU conceded later in the first half, allowing 11 shots on target through 45 minutes before locking down the Redhawks with just two attempts on frame in the second half. The Cougars scored via an own goal in the 66th minute when Delaney Hawkins delivered a cross into the 6-yard box. A lurking McKenna Smith waited to finish the cross, but did not get the chance as Seattle U attempted to clear the ball into its own net.
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
Fresno State picked up its lone win of the season in a 2-0 shutout of Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Sept. 6. The Bulldogs made their Pac-12 debut Thursday, hosting Colorado State in a 2-1 defeat. Hayden Crotty-Romero leads the team with four goals, the only multi-goal scorer. Junior German national Jessie Reiss leads Fresno in goal with seven appearances and 42 saves.
LOOKING AHEAD
Washington State hits the road for the first time in conference play, traveling to Logan, Utah to face nationally-ranked Utah State, Thursday, October 8 at Bell Field. The Cougars and Aggies have met four times previously, including each of the last two seasons in nonconference.
AGGIES TO HOST PAC-12 CHAMPS
For the first time in Pac-12 history, the Pac-12 will host a women’s soccer tournament Nov. 11 and 14 in Logan, Utah. The Utah State Aggies earned the right to host the semifinals and conference finals at Bell Field with the strongest non-conference RPI in the league. The top 4 teams will qualify for semifinals Nov. 11 with the winners advancing to the conference championship, Nov. 14.
HAWKINS HANDLES PRESSURE
True freshman Delaney Hawkins leads the Cougars with four goals and one assist, including her first-career brace in WSU’s 3-1 win over Oregon State, Oct. 1. The Scotssdale, Arizona native delivered her first-career goal in her first-career start Aug. 15 in the win over South Florida. She also drew the challenge which earned the Cougs’ the first-half penalty and the early lead. Hawkins delivered the game-winning assist in WSU’s win over UC Irvine, before delivering the insurance goal in the final minute. Hawkins’ goal at 89 minutes and eight seconds is tied for the ninth-latest goal scored by a Coug in regulation in WSU history.
OH CAPTAINS, MY CAPTAINS
WSU’s senior defensive quartet of Riley Carolan, Ashlyn Dvorak, Keara Fitzgerald, and Makena Smith make up the captain’s room for the Cougs.
CAROLAN CRACKS THE SCORESHEET
Senior co-captain Riley Carolan scored her first career Cougar goal in WSU’s Pac-12 opener against Oregon State. The centerback headed home a corner kick in the 27th minute from a Sandow corner kick. The goal was Carolan’s second-career goal and first since her freshman season at Montana.
AMADO ACE AMAZES
True freshman Isabella Amado scored the sixth-fastest goal in Cougar history and her first career collegiate goal just 54 seconds into the Cougars’ match against Seattle U, Sept. 16. The Colombian drive into space at the right side of the box, driving a strike into the upper netting at the near post.
IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY
Sophomore Aaya McLyn changed her jersey number to 20 this season, becoming the second McLyn to don the number after her sister Aaqila McLyn wore #20 for five seasons with the Cougs, including a run to the College Cup semifinals in 2019.
CITOWICKI ERA BEGINS
Chris Citowicki was named the eighth head coach in WSU soccer program history, December 12, 2025, after eight seasons as the head coach at Montana. Citowicki led the Griz to nine Big Sky Championships, including three-consecutive regular-season titles. The 2023 Big Sky Coach of the Year, Citowicki finished at Montana with a 79-39-32 record and four NCAA postseason appearances.
DVORAK’S FIRST CLEAN SHEET
Redshirt-senior Ashlyn Dvorak got her first clean sheet and win as a Coug in the match against UC Irvine on Aug, 27, 2026. She made four saves with a save percentage of 1.000. Her efforts made it possible for the Cougs to get the 2-0 win over UC Irvine their first win against the Californian team since Sept. 22, 2013. Dvorak added a second shutout at Hawaii, bringing her career total to 25 shutouts.
COUGAR CONNECTIONS
Two current Cougar soccer student-athletes represent second-generation Cougs. Riley Carolan and Delaney Hawkins both have fathers who played football at Washington State. Brett Carolan was a tight end for WSU alongside Drew Bledsoe and went on to have a 3-year NFL career. Adam Hawkins was a team captain for the Cougs just a few years after Carolan graduated. Hawkins played running back alongside NFL legend Steve Gleason. Delaney is the god-daughter of Gleason.
DEVALL’S DELAYED GRATIFICATION
Redshirt-junior Meg Devall waited patiently for her chance to represent WSU, sitting through the 2025 season, before earning a starting spot in the back line for the 2026 season. A native of West Linn, Oregon, Devall started both matches opening weekend, and scored her first-career goal in WSU’s win over USF. Devall’s season was cut short with a season-ending injury in the Cougars nonconference match at Hawaii, Sept. 6.
2026 ROSTER RELOAD
The Cougars welcomed 23 new faces with the coaching change, including 13 transfers and 10 true freshmen. WSU retained eight returnees, including five with field experience and three redshirts. This season, the Cougs have had seven freshmen make their college debuts and 17 student-athletes make their first appearance at WSU. In the season opener against Idaho, 17 Cougs made their WSU debuts, including nine in the starting lineup. Five freshmen played their first college match.
INVEST IN VENIER
WSU’s sophomore goalkeeper Sidney Venier stepped into the starting role in the Cougs’ win over South Florida, replacing starting ‘keeper Ashlyn Dvorak, who is out with a cracked rib. Venier delivered four saves in the win over the Bulls, only conceding on a penalty kick, to earn her first-career goalkeeping win. Venier played both road matches last weekend, earning her first-career shutout in a scoreless draw at North Dakota State, Sunday, August 23 in Fargo, N.D.
IF THE GLOVE FITZ
Sixth-year senior goalkeeper Keara Fitzgerald, returned for the Cougs after holding down the starting job last season until suffering a season-ending injury against North Dakota State, September 18. Fitzgerald’s top performances included a career-high 11 saves in a shutout at California, the most by a Coug ‘keeper in five seasons. The performance earned her WCC Defensive Player of the Week. The California senior tallied an assist in the Cougars’ draw with No. 13 Georgia, August 31, delivering her second-career assist.