Dixie State fell behind early and could not recover as the Trailblazers dropped a 3-1 result to Sonoma State Saturday at Legend Solar Stadium.

Seawolves midfielder Taylor Enzler scored two of SSU's three goals on the afternoon, the first came midway through the 14th-minute as she headed in a corner kick feed from Miriam Bloom to stake Sonoma to a 1-0 lead. SSU defender Cecilia Sifuentes extended the Seawolves' advantage 13 minutes later as she buried a 28-yard free kick from the right wing to give SSU a two-goal cushion.

"We were really disappointed with our performance in the first half," DSU Head Coach Kacey Bingham said. "It took us too long to figure out, especially in the midfield, how they were playing and what we needed to do better. It helped once we could make some adjustments at halftime, but it took us too long and they finished on their set pieces."

Sonoma State (2-1-1) would up its lead to 3-0 seven minutes into the second half when Enzler converted a penalty kick chance after a hard DSU foul in the penalty area.

Dixie State (1-3-0) finally broke through in the 56^th-minute when freshman forward Kamie Hunter (Hooper, Utah/Fremont HS) lobbed a ball to junior forward Darian McCloy (Herriman, Utah/Herriman HS), who headed home her second goal in as many matches to draw the Trailblazers to within 3-1. DSU created several other good scoring chances but could not convert.

Freshman Alexa Estridge (St. George, Utah/Dixie HS) had the best chance as she headed a shot past Sonoma keeper Allison Hadidian that was tracking to the upper right corner of the goal, but an SSU defender managed to deflect the ball away to keep DSU at a two-goal deficit. McCloy and sophomore defender Nichole Mertz (Springville, Utah/Springville HS) also had clear looks at a goal, but their attempts sailed high of the target.

DSU was outshot 13-11, though both teams finished with six shots on goal apiece. McCloy led the way with three shot attempts, two on frame, while junior defender Montana Hadley (Bountiful, Utah/Viewmont HS) was credited with two shots on goal.

"All three goals we conceded today were off of set pieces," Bingham said. "We talked before the game about how set pieces are some of the most dangerous things a team can get in a game. We talked about being mindful of that but still gave up goals on a corner kicker, free kick, and penalty kick. We were able to limit some of their chances in the run of play, but giving up those set pieces is key."

Dixie State heads back out on the road for a pair of in-state matches next week. DSU travels north to Salt Lake City for a non-conference match at Westminster College on Tuesday, Sept. 13, followed by an exhibition match at NCAA Division I foe Southern Utah on Saturday, Sept. 17, in Cedar City.