Fullerton, Calif. – Four second half goals led Arizona State soccer to 4-1 road win at Cal State Fullerton Thursday night in the team's 2019 season opener.
Looking to start the 2019 season with a strong start, ASU jumped out with an aggressive start to the first half. The Sun Devils had the first look at goal just two minutes into the match, but it would be their only real opportunity as the Titan defense buckled down through the rest of the first period.
Coming out of the break, ASU kick-started their offense, scoring the first goal of the 2019 campaign in just the third minute of the half. Redshirt-senior Lorato Sargeant, in her Sun Devil debut, corralled a deflected ball in the box and fired it through to put ASU up, 1-0.
Just one minute later, the Titans would answer with a goal of their own, pulling the score to 1-1 with 42 minutes to play in the match. The Titan attack came off a well-placed corner kick that was deflected and gathered in the box, and just barley pushed over the line for a goal.
Keeping the second half action coming at a fever pitch, sophomore Marleen Schimmer laced a strike from well outside the box, securing the eventual game-winner with a ball that floated past the outstretched hands of the Titan's keeper, putting the Devils up, 2-1.
The Sun Devils would stretch their lead to two goals when junior Olive Jones found herself on the receiving end of a beautifully placed pass in the box from Sargeant, pushing ASU out front, 3-1.
In the 81st- minute, Alexia Delgado would join the second-half scoring party with a strike of her own, capping ASU's 4-1 season-opening win.
In goal, the Sun Devils received a stellar performance from freshman Giulia Cascapera who anchored the defense while recording three saves and turning away 10 total shot attempts.
The Sun Devils will be back in action this Sunday for their home opener against Central Arkansas. Kickoff in Sunday's contest is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. PT, and will be streamed live on TheSunDevils.com. Fans can also follow all of the action from the 2019 season by following @SunDevilSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.
Your Sun Devils following a 4-1 road win to start the season! #ForksUp pic.twitter.com/924FFIq55m
— Sun Devil Soccer (@SunDevilSoccer) August 23, 2019
A Word With Winkworth...
On the team's performance in the win:
"I want to first praise our opponent. They were very well-coached and very organized. They were very difficult to break down and they were the better team in the first half. I am very happy with the result, especially the second-half performance, but they were better than us in the first half. Overall it was a much better performance for us in the second half. We were able to make some minor changes and we were much more effective going forward. I am very proud of our team, and very proud of all 32 of the players on our roster because they have been pushing each other for a long time now. I am very pleased with what they have accomplished."
On freshman Giulia Cascapera's debut in goal:
"We really threw her in the deep end tonight. Unfortunately, Sydney Day came down with an illness that ruled her out and thrust Giulia in the position and I thought she did a fantastic job. She was able to pull off a couple of fantastic saves in the first half to keep the game scoreless and give us something to work for in the second half. It would have been nice to get a clean sheet, but it wasn't to be. To her credit, and everyone else around her, I thought we did well to manage the shock of the equalizer coming so quickly.
On Lorato Sargeant's performance in the win:
"Lo did very well for us tonight. She was asked to play multiple positions and it is never easy to do that. I told her coming in that this season she was going to be used in many different ways. I thought she defended very well. She is very athletic and has got pace and is usually very dangerous coming forward from the defense, but Fullerton did a good job defending her. In the forward position, she was very opportunistic and took her chances very well. I was very proud of her and the way she responded. She scored a nice one, and I think Schimmer's goal is an early goal of the season contender. We played some excellent football in the second half."
His thoughts on the new faces who made their ASU debut tonight:
"I was very pleased for them. A lot of them were able to come to Mexico with us and we grew as a family on and off the field. To finally have the season start and pick up a big win on the road at Fullerton, who is very good, I was very very happy for them. There were a couple of shaky moments at the back, but I thought overall, we defended very well. We had a lot of new faces in the back-line. Even when players came in off the bench I thought we showed the quality and depth that we have. A lot of great players came in, whether it was Nicole Soto for ten minutes to do a marking job for us in a position that is not familiar for her, I thought she did a great job. Olive Jones coming in at fullback, Olivia Nguyen coming in up top, I thought we really showed the quality of depth that we have got and I was really pleased for everyone."
On preparing for a tough Match Sunday against UCA:
Right now we all just need to enjoy the moment, but tomorrow morning it will be a new day and we will start focusing on Central Arkansas. That is a team that finished 62nd in the nation, just missing out on the NCAA Tournament, just like ourselves. This will be their first game of the season so they will be rested. They are very talented and Sunday will be a real test for us, and another opportunity for us to play a quality opponent on the opening weekend of the season. I know we are really excited to play in front of our home fans because we have got the best fans in the country."
MATCH NOTES…
- ASU has now won five straight season openers, including a perfect 3-0 mark under head coach Graham Winkworth.
- In total, seven players made their Sun Devil debut tonight, including five players who made their collegiate debut.
- With tonight's win, ASU moves to a perfect 2-0 record all-time against the Titans with their last win coming during the 2007 season. In those matchups, ASU has outscored Fullerton, 6-1.