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SANDY — The Utah Royals had one goal in the entire month of June, but July's tally is up to 10 after a 5-1 win over Liga MX Femenil club Tijuana Wednesday at America First Field in the team's final match of group play.
"It's about getting the right people on the ball at the right moment," Royals head coach Jimmy Coenraets said. "If you can do this against other teams ... if we get those things ready for the (NWSL) competition, then we'll see what happens."
Captain Paige Monaghan got her first goal in a Royals jersey to tie things up in the 20th minute after an early giveaway, and Hannah Betfort and Ally Sentnor scored two at the end of the first half for a 3-1 lead at the break.
Sandy native and BYU alum Brecken Mozingo scored her first professional goals in the 64th and 95th minutes to cap off an impressive offensive outing for the once goal-deficient Royals.
That first pro goal feeling 😏 pic.twitter.com/Sd8pm0LC7E
— Utah Royals FC (@UtahRoyalsFC) August 1, 2024
"It felt great," Mozingo said of her goals. "I mean, honestly, I just had to be in the right spot for my teammates. They were like quarterbacks throwing dimes. They were the ones that really did all the work."
The team got off 28 total shots, including 10 on target, and dominated possession around the Tijuana box with 12 corner kicks on the night.
Utah won its final two matches of Summer Cup group play by a combined score of 8-2 to take first place in Group A. The team will have to wait for the results from other groups before finding out its fate in the tournament, however, as only the top four point-earners across all five groups earn semifinal spots.
If the team doesn't advance, the Royals' next match will be a home friendly against Crystal Palace on Aug. 16 at AFF.
