The Utes found the game's first goal in the 19th minute of play, when Holly Daugirda found Courtney Talbot to put the visitors up, 1-0.
Just a few minutes later, sophomore Alexia Delgado found the back of the net following a beautiful pass from fellow sophomore Nicole Douglas to push the score to 1-1 midway through the first half.
'24| @AlexiaDelgado99 slams it in! pic.twitter.com/nNHObR7SDH
— Sun Devil Soccer (@SunDevilSoccer) September 27, 2019
With neither team able to find the back of the net in the final 21 minutes of the half, the teams would head to the break with the score reading 1-1.
The Sun Devils got to work quickly following the halftime break, scoring a go-ahead goal in the 63rd minute of play, when Marleen Schimmer fired into the lower corner of the net to give ASU a 2-1 lead with just 23 minutes left in regulation.
Unfortunately, the Sun Devil lead would be short-lived, as the Utes would take advantage of a penalty kick, called because of a handball in the box in the 76th minute of play, knotting the score at 2-2.Straight automatic. ??@SunDevilSoccer's Marleen Schimmer delivers a laser shot to the bottom left portion of the net and is the @OpusBank #12Best moment of the game. pic.twitter.com/dDJiK1q5eH
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) September 27, 2019
With neither team able to break through again in the final minutes of regulation, the Sun Devils found themselves in overtime for the second-straight match.
Following a pair of scoreless overtime periods, the Sun Devils would ultimately settle for their second consecutive draw.
FINAL in Tempe. Good work, Devils! pic.twitter.com/AMRrg9V9l2
— Sun Devil Soccer (@SunDevilSoccer) September 27, 2019
A Word With Winkworth…
On the team's play in the conference opener:
"Very mixed. In the first half, I thought we were fantastic. I think we had two-thirds of the (possession) and limited them to one real chance during the whole first half. All credit to Utah for having a good plan. They were well organized defensively, exactly what we expected, but we managed to score. We managed to break them down with a fantastic goal. We came into halftime after a fantastic goal. In the second half, I was disappointed with our energy. We asked for more energy at halftime, but I felt like we had a little less in the second half. Utah wanted it a little bit more in the second half. That was a little disappointing, but I thought we rectified that in overtime. We fought for more balls and had the opportunity to win the game. Again, we hit the target six out of 17 times, and that is a reflection of our finishing right now. We have got to put the ball in the back of the net. Although we have scored in every game this year, we are just not clinical enough and not hitting the target enough."
On the team's ability to control possession again in Friday's match:
"Our philosophy as coaches is that we want the ball. I don't know what the time of possession was in the second half, but in the first half, we had 67 percent of the ball. You can't get too many goals conceded against you if you have that time of possession. We use our attack as a form of defending. Our style of soccer is a lot more fun to watch, and as a player, it is a lot more fun to play when your team is in possession of the ball. We just need to finish, and be a little bit more clinical. We have got to do a better job of getting the ball wide."
MATCH NOTES:
- The Sun Devils have now scored a goal in every game they have played so far this season, including scoring multiple goals in six of their ten games played
- With her goal today, Alexia Delgado became the eighth Sun Devil to have scored multiple goals on the season. With her second goal of the season today, Delgado now has five total goals in her Sun Devil playing career.
- Sophomore Marleen Schimmer notched her fourth goal of the season in Friday's game. She is now one goal shy of matching her total number of goals from a season ago.
- The Sun Devils picked up their second straight home draw, marking the first time since 2014 that the Sun Devils have settled for a tie in back to back home matches.
- With Friday's draw, ASU moves to 5-5-2 all-time against Utah, including a 4-1-2 record against Utah at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium.
ASU will continue their grueling Pac-12 schedule with a pair of home matches next week, featuring two top-10 opponents. Action will begin with a Thursday meeting with No. 3 USC, before closing out the second week of Pac-12 play against seventh-ranked UCLA on Sunday. Fans can follow all of the action from the 2019 season by following @SunDevilSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.