TEMPE, Ariz.-- The Arizona State women's soccer team will continue their home stand this weekend, hosting the 2018 Sun Devil Desert Classic Friday and Sunday at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium.
Action in the weekend classic will kick off Friday with a match featuring Arizona and Southeastern Missouri State before the Sun Devils take the field for the first time against New Hampshire, Friday at 7 p.m. PT.
Arizona State (1-0-0) will enter the weekend fresh off a, 3-1, season opening win over Montana last Thursday evening. In the win, Arizona State found their offensive production from a pair of freshmen who combined for all three goals.
"To have all three goals scored by freshmen was huge," head coach Graham Winkworth said of the effort by the newcomers on the Sun Devil squad. "We knew we would see a big impact from this freshmen class, not just because there are so many of them, but because there is so much talent. It was great to see Cori (Sullivan) get her first goal and to see Dougie (Nicole Douglas) score a couple as well was great. I think she will score a bunch of goals during her career here, she is going to be a good player. We have a lot of young talent that is being led by a great returning group of players."
Also in the win, Arizona State saw a brilliant outing from senior keeper Sydney Day, who made her first start in goal for the Sun Devils. Day allowed just one goal in the win, facing ten shots and making five saves.
"Sydney did well," Winkworth said of his senior keeper's outing last week. "I thought the whole team was a bit shaky at the beginning, but after we settled down, she did not really have much to do. She has done well and has been training hard, but Nikki (Panas) and Amanda (Green) have been training hard as well. We have three really good goalkeepers so no one can afford to be making too many errors and no one can afford to relax."
New Hampshire enters the weekend tilt on a two-game slide that started with an 0-2 loss to No. 14 Princeton last Friday, followed by a 4-0 loss at the hands of UMass on Sunday.
"They (New Hampshire) are a big, strong and direct team," Winkworth said of the visiting Wildcats. "They have big powerful attacking players. It will not be easy to get around them. They have scored a few goals this season from a number of different players so they bring a lot of different attacking threats."
Following the Sun Devil's match against New Hampshire, attention will turn to visiting Southeastern Missouri State who enters the weekend with a 1-2 record, and fresh off a 3-0 win over Illinois Springfield, a match that saw freshman Morgan McCourt score twice against the Prairie Stars.
After this weekend's stretch, the Sun Devils will hit the road for the first time this season, heading to Tucson Friday Sept. 7, to take on 2017 Elite Eight competitor Baylor, before heading to Brookings South Dakota for a Sept. 10 meeting with South Dakota State.
Fans can follow all of the action from the 2018 Sun Devil Soccer season by following @SunDevilSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
FULL WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Friday:
Arizona vs. Southeastern Missouri State - 4:30 p.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Arizona State vs. New Hampshire - 7:00 p.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Sunday:
Arizona vs. New Hampshire - 11:00 a.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Arizona State vs. Southeastern Missouri State - 1:00 p.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Action in the weekend classic will kick off Friday with a match featuring Arizona and Southeastern Missouri State before the Sun Devils take the field for the first time against New Hampshire, Friday at 7 p.m. PT.
Arizona State (1-0-0) will enter the weekend fresh off a, 3-1, season opening win over Montana last Thursday evening. In the win, Arizona State found their offensive production from a pair of freshmen who combined for all three goals.
"To have all three goals scored by freshmen was huge," head coach Graham Winkworth said of the effort by the newcomers on the Sun Devil squad. "We knew we would see a big impact from this freshmen class, not just because there are so many of them, but because there is so much talent. It was great to see Cori (Sullivan) get her first goal and to see Dougie (Nicole Douglas) score a couple as well was great. I think she will score a bunch of goals during her career here, she is going to be a good player. We have a lot of young talent that is being led by a great returning group of players."
Also in the win, Arizona State saw a brilliant outing from senior keeper Sydney Day, who made her first start in goal for the Sun Devils. Day allowed just one goal in the win, facing ten shots and making five saves.
"Sydney did well," Winkworth said of his senior keeper's outing last week. "I thought the whole team was a bit shaky at the beginning, but after we settled down, she did not really have much to do. She has done well and has been training hard, but Nikki (Panas) and Amanda (Green) have been training hard as well. We have three really good goalkeepers so no one can afford to be making too many errors and no one can afford to relax."
Arizona State enters the weekend as one of six undefeated Pac-12 teams and sitting in fifth place in the conference standings. Having played just one game so far this season, ASU ranks first in shots per game with 21, and is tied for third in goals per game heading into the weekend.
This week brings new challenges for the Sun Devils in the form of New Hampshire and Southeastern Missouri State University, a pair of clubs looking to find their stride early in the season.New Hampshire enters the weekend tilt on a two-game slide that started with an 0-2 loss to No. 14 Princeton last Friday, followed by a 4-0 loss at the hands of UMass on Sunday.
"They (New Hampshire) are a big, strong and direct team," Winkworth said of the visiting Wildcats. "They have big powerful attacking players. It will not be easy to get around them. They have scored a few goals this season from a number of different players so they bring a lot of different attacking threats."
Following the Sun Devil's match against New Hampshire, attention will turn to visiting Southeastern Missouri State who enters the weekend with a 1-2 record, and fresh off a 3-0 win over Illinois Springfield, a match that saw freshman Morgan McCourt score twice against the Prairie Stars.
After this weekend's stretch, the Sun Devils will hit the road for the first time this season, heading to Tucson Friday Sept. 7, to take on 2017 Elite Eight competitor Baylor, before heading to Brookings South Dakota for a Sept. 10 meeting with South Dakota State.
Fans can follow all of the action from the 2018 Sun Devil Soccer season by following @SunDevilSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
FULL WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Friday:
Arizona vs. Southeastern Missouri State - 4:30 p.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Arizona State vs. New Hampshire - 7:00 p.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Sunday:
Arizona vs. New Hampshire - 11:00 a.m. / Live stats / Live stream
Arizona State vs. Southeastern Missouri State - 1:00 p.m. / Live stats / Live stream