Weber State University’s women’s soccer team closed out their conference campaign with a 3–0 win over Idaho State University on the road in Pocatello on Oct. 26, courtesy of a hat trick from forward Grace Kirby.
Head coach Kyle Christensen’s first season in Weber’s technical area will extend into the Big Sky Soccer championship tournament in Missoula, Montana, come early November following this victory. The 11 wins on the season are tied fourth most in program history, having last reached that tally in 2021. It is the most wins ever recorded by a first-year head coach at Weber State.
“Extremely proud of the team for finishing the regular season strong and getting a good result,” Christensen said. “The win was important to keep momentum as we begin preparing for the conference tournament … I was also very pleased with our defensive efforts to earn another shutout on the season.”
The Wildcats had things their way at Davis Field, with forward Tenzi Knowles and midfielder Cadence Packer rattling warning shots off the woodwork prior to Kirby’s opener.
In minute 41, Cadence and Simone Packer combined in the build-up before finding Kirby just outside the Bengal penalty area. Kirby, with her back toward the goal, turned the defender with her first touch before nestling a left-footed shot into the bottom right corner to open the scoring.
Five minutes into the second half, Kirby struck again after winning the ball back high up the pitch. The Wildcat forward pounced on the defender’s loose touch and finished through the legs of Idaho State goalkeeper Hannah Wieler with her right foot.
Kirby buried any chance of an ISU comeback in minute 67 and bagged her third goal of the afternoon. Weber State forward Presley Ray played winger Harlee Thomas in behind the Bengal’s defensive line, and Thomas slid in to cut the ball back to an unmarked Kirby inside the box with her right foot. As Wieler rushed forward from her goal, Kirby kept calm and slotted home for 3–0.
“Excited to see Grace Kirby get a well-deserved hat trick,” Christensen said. “She has been an important part of our attack all season long, and it was great to see her get rewarded for her efforts.”
Kirby’s hat trick, the first by a Wildcat since Morgan Furmaniak in 2022, means that Weber State will head into the conference tournament as the number two seed. They will face the winner of the three-seeded Eastern Washington University and six-seeded Northern Arizona University on Nov. 7.
