Girls soccer: Ogden completes perfect region run after humbling start
Tigers blank Scots 6-0 in on Senior Night in regular-season finale
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- Ogden High’s Ryklie Moss (3) takes an embrace from teammate Gwenyth Aardema to celebrate their team’s goal against Ben Lomond during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ogden High’s Alondra Ayala (19) tracks down the ball against Ben Lomond during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ogden High’s Gracelynn Litz possesses the ball during a Region 12 girls soccer game against Ben Lomond on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ogden High players Ryklie Moss, left, and Gwenyth Aardema high-five each other after an Ogden goal against Ben Lomond during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ben Lomond keeper Camilla Arroyo tries to keep her balance during a Region 12 girls soccer game against Ogden on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ogden High’s Bryleigh Thomas pushes the ball upfield against Ben Lomond during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ben Lomond’s Reghan Espinoza (5) heads the ball as Ogden’s Elle Weston (2) approaches during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ogden High’s Elle Weston (2) and Ben Lomond’s Reghan Espinoza tussle for the ball during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ben Lomond’s Lorena Hernandez Diaz, left, pushes past Ogden’s Elle Weston during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ben Lomond’s Lorena Hernandez Diaz, left, tries to control the ball during a Region 12 girls soccer game against Ogden on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ben Lomond’s Zaylin Zepeda, left, and Ogden’s Alondra Ayala contest the ball during a Region 12 girls soccer game Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Ogden High’s Gracelynn Litz (7) smiles and gestures during senior day pregame recognition on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, in Ogden. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
OGDEN – Striving to sustain success can mess with your mind.
Ogden High has won two of the past three girls 3A state championships and had seven seniors returning from last year’s title team.
But the Tigers started the season 3-6 before beginning region play in September.
“We had high expectations for this year because we were so good last year; all that pressure made us not play for ourselves. We played for others and kind of lost it,” Ogden co-captain Elle Weston said. “When we realized we actually liked playing soccer, we started having a little more fun and that turned the page.”
The Tigers completed a perfect Region 12 campaign on Thursday, sweeping Ben Lomond with a 6-0 shutout on senior night.
“Preseason was really hard. We played a lot of good teams and resolved to try and do our best in region,” Weston said. “We’re really enjoying soccer and enjoying our senior year.
“Region does matter a lot for our team; it helps us build our confidence and get us ready for state. Preseason broke our confidence and region was really important for us to gain it back,” Weston said.
Ogden (11-6, 8-0 Region 12) coach Alexis King walked a fine line between scheduling a difficult preseason to challenge her team or to see them crash and burn.
“We knew we were having a lot of returners and our goal in preseason was to see how we could compete with some of the best teams in the state. The teams we played were very talented and that ended up being a struggle for us,” King said. “We were dealing with learning how to lose and how to come back. Heading into region we slowly built our confidence back and started feeling more comfortable playing together again”
Facing off against a Ben Lomond (5-8, 0-7) team they beat by a combined score of 14-0 in the two-game sweep raised the confidence level up a notch.
“They had few shots on goal. Working together; playing for each other…game management. Being smart with the ball. Making good decisions on the back line helped us,” King said.
Whitney Fife and Indie Ketcham shared goalkeeping duties for the Tigers in posting the clean sheet.
(in an interesting contrast, Ben Lomond went 5-1 in preseason and is 0-7 in region action.)
Weston scored a goal in the 3rd minute, and the Tigers were off and running.
“I was in the corner of the 18 and didn’t see anyone to cross it to. There was a gap into the goal, and I took it with my right foot and hit it,” Weston said. “It made me relax more, because I really wanted to get a goal on senior night. It gave us the momentum to keep scoring.”
Five different players found the net for Ogden, with goals by senior Ryklie Moss, senior Sophia Gray and sophomore Gwenyth Aardema leading to a 4-0 lead at the half.
Senior Seren Gee tallied in the second half, and Weston completed a brace in the 59th minute.
“This group of seniors…we grew up playing with each other. (Senior night) definitely an emotional ride, but this is a celebration of all the years we’ve stuck together; not anything sad,” Weston said.
Weston’s two goals against the Scots give her 13 for the season, a far cry from the 42 she scored last year. She said it is by design.
“My goal was not to break the school record again, but (to) enjoy soccer. There was a lot of pressure my junior year and once I got that record, I thought this is my last year of high school, my last year playing with these girls and it’s not going to be about scoring goals, but putting a smile on my face,” Weston said.
As much as the Tigers would like to put the rough preseason behind them, they saw some benefits as the region season progressed.
“I think those hard preseason games helped us in some of our region games that were close where we worked right until the final seconds. We played Grantsville on Tuesday and scored in the last minute to win the game,” King said. “Hard games in region helped us be resilient. I feel our team has got its feet under them again; feeling confident. We’re excited to compete.”
With what looked like an easy game on the schedule against the Scots, King said she got her team ready by concentrating on the fine print as they prepared.
“We knew this was the last game before the playoffs; our last time to practice…focus in warmups, focus when the whistle blows, focus on doing all the little things right,” King said. “Our mindset is shifting now. We’re in playoff mode; this is it. It’s been fun but now it’s time to dial in and be ready for state.”
A successful Ogden program doesn’t need any more incentive when the playoffs are announced next week, but Weston still has yet another goal in mind.
“Hopefully win back-to-back championships because in this program we’ve never done that. Our goal is to go back-to-back,” Weston said.
Bob Judson has covered high school sports for the Standard-Examiner for 51 years.
