(Tucson, AZ) After cutting a two-goal deficit in half, a series of near misses prevented the Sun Devil soccer team from coming away with a result in a 2-1 loss at Arizona on Friday.
ASU ended the match with advantages in shots (12-10), shots on goal (6-4) and corner kicks (10-4/7-1 in the second half).
Both teams displayed all the emotions that are characteristic of a rivalry game. The result: a pair of cautions for each squad and a combined 16 fouls in the game. The Sun Devils were deemed to be responsible for 11 of the infractions, including one that led to an Arizona penalty kick. At game’s end, the goal scored on the penalty kick turned out to be the difference in the game.
“Tonight’s result was a tough one to swallow,” ASU head coach Graham Winkworth said. “I felt we were in control for large portions of the match and created enough chances to win multiple games. We have struggled to create enough chances in recent weeks, but this was not a problem tonight.
“We have had an incredible season so far and I’m proud of the girls. I am feeling very good about the NCAA Selection Show on Monday. With the big results against the likes of USC, Utah State and Mississippi State combined with no losses against teams ranked 100+ and a strong strength of schedule I am excited to watch the show on Monday.”
Down 2-0 in the 54th minute, the Sun Devils fought back with the determination that has defined much of their season. ASU’s aggressiveness when it had the ball in its possession created seven corner kicks along with several strong scoring chances in the final 40 minutes of the game.
The pressure ASU exerted on Arizona’s defense resulted in its first goal of the game in the 56th minute, a response that took less than two minutes after the Wildcats scored their second goal. Initially set up by a corner kick, Gabi Rennie fired a shot that ended up being misplayed leading to an own goal by the Wildcats.
Arizona goalkeeper Hope Hisey made four of her five saves in the second half. Two of the saves came less than 30 seconds apart. Once again, an ASU corner kick was responsible for creating chaos. Out of the chaos came near misses for the Sun Devils as both Keri Matthews and Allison Carabin were denied by Hisey.
Rennie had her shot blocked in the 83rd minute before the Wildcats staved on one last dangerous opportunity by Enasia Colon, but the shot off the foot of ASU’s leading scorer was saved.
“Ultimately tonight we were not good enough in both penalty boxes,” Winkworth added. “We needed greater desire and decision making in the defensive end and we needed to be far more clinical offensively.”
The game was a physical encounter as time had to be called numerous times to tend to injured players. The Sun Devils entered the game already down in numbers. Winkworth said he expects the team’s health to be improved next week (“We should also be getting one or two bodies back in the next couple of days which will be a nice boost for the team this week.”) if the Sun Devils are rewarded for their season with an NCAA Tournament bid on Monday.
ASU nearly struck early in the game when Matthews chipped a great cross into the box but no Sun Devils were able to reach the ball and take advantage of the opportunity.
The Sun Devils used a brilliant string of passes to quickly march from one end of the field to the other in the 17th minute. The final pass of the sequence nearly produced the first goal of the game as Colon set up Lauren Kirberg with a great look at the net. A last-second defensive play by the Wildcats prevented Kirberg from giving ASU the lead.
In the 27th minute and again in the 28th minute, the Wildcats were able to move the ball into the attacking third. Despite the amount of time they occupied that all-important area of real estate, the Wildcats failed to get off a shot thanks to the outstanding organization of the Sun Devil defense.
ASU threatened to score again in the 34th minute when Rennie’s cross just missed connecting with the foot of Colon, who made a leaping attempt to redirect the ball into the net.
The best scoring opportunity either team had in the first half occurred in the 40th minute when Arizona’s Sami Baytosh was able to maneuver the ball into a dangerous area before firing a shot that Sun Devil goalkeeper Pauline Nelles was able to get just enough of to prevent a goal. Even after Nelles’ effort, the ball continued to roll parallel to the goal line. With another Arizona attacker closing in to finish the job, Sun Devil all-everything defender Lieske Carleer swooped in to make a remarkable clearance and keep the game scoreless.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Steve Rodriguez
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