TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona State soccer team will return home this weekend to continue Pac-12 play against Colorado and Utah Thursday and Sunday afternoon at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium.
Action will get underway at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium with a 2 p.m. match against the Buffaloes on Thursday, before closing out the weekend with a 1 p.m. match against the Utes on Sunday.
This week, the Sun Devils will look to extend their four-match unbeaten streak, following a weekend that saw ASU complete a come-from-behind win on the road at Cal this past weekend. The four-match win streak is the first for ASU since winning four straight matches to start the 2015 season.
"Anytime you travel in the Pac-12 it's extremely difficult to get any points," head coach Graham Winkworth said. "To go to California where we have not won in 12 years and get a win is huge. Getting those three points is a beautiful start to the league campaign. I think we played some of our best soccer. We were courageous in the way we played, we defended extremely well and all around it was a great day for ASU soccer."
The pair of home matches this weekend will mark the first time the Sun Devils will play back-to-back home contests since hosting New Hampshire and SEMO in back-to-back home matches on August 31 and September 2. ASU enters this weekend's slate as one of six teams who won matches on the opening weekend of Pac-12 play, and one of only three teams to claim a road win in their conference opener.
This weekend, the Sun Devils will receive a huge test in the form of Colorado and Utah. Action will begin Thursday when the team hosts one of the most potent offenses in the nation in Colorado. The Buffaloes enter the weekend contest as the nation's third highest scoring teams (32 goals) and second in points per game (10.2). The Sun Devils will have their hands full trying to slow down two of the top scoring threats in the Pac-12 in Tatum Barton, who lead the league with 11 goals and Jorian Baucom who is tied for second in the Pac-12 with seven goals already this season.
"They score a lot of goals," Winkworth said of the Buffs offense. "They have a dangerous front two and when they take them out, they put another dangerous front two in. Then their star, Taylor Kornieck, is a very, very talented young lady. She plays for the United States youth team and she's about six foot tall and very very gifted. We know that we are going to have our work cut out for us. They're well coached, Danny (Sanchez) does a great job up there, and we are very much looking forward to the challenge."
Things won't get any easier for the Sun Devils in their Sunday match against Utah. The Utes will begin their weekend with a Thursday match in Tucson, before heading to Tempe to close out their trip to the Grand Canyon State Sunday afternoon. Utah makes the trip fresh off a heartbreaking loss to Oregon in their Pac-12 opener. Utah has struggled early in the season but has found their footing on the road, battling to a 2-2-1 record away from home.
The Utes have been supported by a balanced attack that has seen five different players score goals to this point of the season. Paola van der Veen and Hailey Skolmoski have led the team with four goals each so far this season. On the defensive end of the pitch, Carly Nelson has anchored the Utah defense, accounting for 31 saves already this season.
ASU picked up a huge win in their last outing, topping Cal in Berkeley for the first time since 2006. Last season, the Sun Devils fought a full 110 minutes and left the Bay with a draw, but this season, the Sun Devils used a pair of second half goals to escape Berkeley with a 2-1 win. The pair of goals against the Golden Bears represents the first multi-goal game from ASU against Cal since 2009 (3-2 overtime loss) and stands as the fifth multi-goal performance by the Sun Devils against Cal in program history.
Although the remaining Pac-12 schedule looms as a daunting challenge for the Sun Devils, ASU enters the week with a .750 win percentage on the season, a mark that is tied for 42nd in the nation.
A major reason for Arizona State's success this season has been their stifling defense, a point of emphasis for the team from the first week of training this season.
"We have only conceded two goals from open play all season," Winkworth said. "The fact that we are being so stingy defensively is great. We need to tighten up in set pieces particularly for Thursday's game because they are deadly in those looks, but we are excited for the challenges this week."
For the Sun Devils, freshman forward Nicole Douglas has continued her torrid start to the season, netting another goal in Arizona State's 2-1 win over the Golden Bears last weekend. With her most recent goal, Douglas has now scored an impressive six goals on the year in just seven games played. The talented forward needs four more goals to crack into a tie for 8th place on the single season goal scoring leaders list in Sun Devil soccer history. The last player to reach a double-digit mark in goals scored was Cali Farquharson in 2015.
Following this weekend's action, the Sun Devils will hit the road again, this time traveling to Los Angeles to take on USC and UCLA. Fans can follow all of the action from the Sun Devils' 2018 season by following @SunDevilSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
Action will get underway at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium with a 2 p.m. match against the Buffaloes on Thursday, before closing out the weekend with a 1 p.m. match against the Utes on Sunday.
This week, the Sun Devils will look to extend their four-match unbeaten streak, following a weekend that saw ASU complete a come-from-behind win on the road at Cal this past weekend. The four-match win streak is the first for ASU since winning four straight matches to start the 2015 season.
"Anytime you travel in the Pac-12 it's extremely difficult to get any points," head coach Graham Winkworth said. "To go to California where we have not won in 12 years and get a win is huge. Getting those three points is a beautiful start to the league campaign. I think we played some of our best soccer. We were courageous in the way we played, we defended extremely well and all around it was a great day for ASU soccer."
The pair of home matches this weekend will mark the first time the Sun Devils will play back-to-back home contests since hosting New Hampshire and SEMO in back-to-back home matches on August 31 and September 2. ASU enters this weekend's slate as one of six teams who won matches on the opening weekend of Pac-12 play, and one of only three teams to claim a road win in their conference opener.
This weekend, the Sun Devils will receive a huge test in the form of Colorado and Utah. Action will begin Thursday when the team hosts one of the most potent offenses in the nation in Colorado. The Buffaloes enter the weekend contest as the nation's third highest scoring teams (32 goals) and second in points per game (10.2). The Sun Devils will have their hands full trying to slow down two of the top scoring threats in the Pac-12 in Tatum Barton, who lead the league with 11 goals and Jorian Baucom who is tied for second in the Pac-12 with seven goals already this season.
"They score a lot of goals," Winkworth said of the Buffs offense. "They have a dangerous front two and when they take them out, they put another dangerous front two in. Then their star, Taylor Kornieck, is a very, very talented young lady. She plays for the United States youth team and she's about six foot tall and very very gifted. We know that we are going to have our work cut out for us. They're well coached, Danny (Sanchez) does a great job up there, and we are very much looking forward to the challenge."
Things won't get any easier for the Sun Devils in their Sunday match against Utah. The Utes will begin their weekend with a Thursday match in Tucson, before heading to Tempe to close out their trip to the Grand Canyon State Sunday afternoon. Utah makes the trip fresh off a heartbreaking loss to Oregon in their Pac-12 opener. Utah has struggled early in the season but has found their footing on the road, battling to a 2-2-1 record away from home.
The Utes have been supported by a balanced attack that has seen five different players score goals to this point of the season. Paola van der Veen and Hailey Skolmoski have led the team with four goals each so far this season. On the defensive end of the pitch, Carly Nelson has anchored the Utah defense, accounting for 31 saves already this season.
ASU picked up a huge win in their last outing, topping Cal in Berkeley for the first time since 2006. Last season, the Sun Devils fought a full 110 minutes and left the Bay with a draw, but this season, the Sun Devils used a pair of second half goals to escape Berkeley with a 2-1 win. The pair of goals against the Golden Bears represents the first multi-goal game from ASU against Cal since 2009 (3-2 overtime loss) and stands as the fifth multi-goal performance by the Sun Devils against Cal in program history.
Although the remaining Pac-12 schedule looms as a daunting challenge for the Sun Devils, ASU enters the week with a .750 win percentage on the season, a mark that is tied for 42nd in the nation.
A major reason for Arizona State's success this season has been their stifling defense, a point of emphasis for the team from the first week of training this season.
"We have only conceded two goals from open play all season," Winkworth said. "The fact that we are being so stingy defensively is great. We need to tighten up in set pieces particularly for Thursday's game because they are deadly in those looks, but we are excited for the challenges this week."
For the Sun Devils, freshman forward Nicole Douglas has continued her torrid start to the season, netting another goal in Arizona State's 2-1 win over the Golden Bears last weekend. With her most recent goal, Douglas has now scored an impressive six goals on the year in just seven games played. The talented forward needs four more goals to crack into a tie for 8th place on the single season goal scoring leaders list in Sun Devil soccer history. The last player to reach a double-digit mark in goals scored was Cali Farquharson in 2015.
Following this weekend's action, the Sun Devils will hit the road again, this time traveling to Los Angeles to take on USC and UCLA. Fans can follow all of the action from the Sun Devils' 2018 season by following @SunDevilSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.