TEMPE – In what was one of the most highly-anticipated fixtures on Sun Devil Soccer’s home schedule this season turned sour as the ninth-ranked Baylor Bears flexed their muscles to earn a 2-0 win over Arizona State inside Sun Devil Soccer Stadium on Thursday night.
Both teams played at an up-and-down pace throughout the first 45 minutes, which resulted in 18 combined shot attempts (Baylor – 11, Arizona State – 7), but neither found the back of the net.
Arizona State appeared in prime position to take a one-goal lead when an Emmie Ennis cross inside the offensive 18-yard box hit a Baylor defender’s hand that would have resulted in a penalty kick opportunity, but the referee crew decided against it after looking at the video assist replay system.
The non-call flipped the momentum of the match and ultimately led to Baylor (13-2-1, 6-1-1) taking a 1-0 lead on a Theresa McCullough goal on a counterattack.
Arizona State, over the next 30 minutes, looked for the equalizer on five shot attempts, but none found its way into the back of the net.
Baylor doubled its lead during the 82’, when Brynnlee Bohannon found Aryanna Jimison for the Bears’ second second-half goal of the contest. Meanwhile, the Sun Devils recorded just a pair of shot attempts – with neither being on goal – over the match’s remaining eight minutes.
Scoring Summary
57’, 1-0, BU, Goal by Theresa McCullough, Assist by Olivia Hess
82’, 2-0, BU, Goal by Aryanna Jimison, Assist by Brynnlee Bohannon
From Head Coach Graham Winkworth
“I honestly felt like in the middle part of the pitch, we were the better team for the 90 minutes tonight. But the game isn't won in the middle part of the pitch; the game is won in both penalty areas. Azul (Alvarez), (Baylor’s) goalkeeper, made some big saves to keep her clean sheet, and their strikers did a better job finishing than ours today. So, congratulations to Baylor. They're very dangerous in both penalty areas. They've got, maybe, the best goalkeeper in the country and some wonderful finishers. I thought their number 10 was pretty special.”
From junior forward Kierra Blundell
“Obviously, (Baylor is) a good team, but I think we were the better team tonight. I think we controlled the game for a lot of the time. The two chances they got, they capitalized on. We’ve got to do better defending, but we also have to do better attacking. We’ve got to capitalize on our chances, and that's just getting reps in and just really putting in the work in that area.”
Match Notes
- Checking in during the 43’, Arizona State sophomore forward Tano Uzezi-Itesa made her season debut.
- It’s the first time Uzezi-Itesa, a Fort Worth, Texas native, has appeared in a match for the Sun Devils since Oct. 30, 2025, when she played seven matches off the bench in a 90-minute, 0-0 tie at Arizona.
- Uzezi-Itesa later checked into match for Sierra Bergen during the 73’ in the second half.
- With Tano Uzezi-Itesa’s shot during the 76’, the Sun Devils recorded their 10th shot of the match, extending a streak of consecutive home conference matches with double-digit shot attempts to four.
- With Izzy Duink earning the starting assignment at goalkeeper for Arizona State, it marks the first time since the 2022 season that multiple Sun Devils have started at least one home match between the pipes.
- It’s the first time Uzezi-Itesa, a Fort Worth, Texas native, has appeared in a match for the Sun Devils since Oct. 30, 2025, when she played seven matches off the bench in a 90-minute, 0-0 tie at Arizona.
Up Next
Arizona State (8-5-3, 3-4-1) will stay in Tempe for its next match when the Sun Devils take on Colorado at 1 p.m. MST on Sunday, Oct. 25 inside Sun Devil Soccer Stadium. The Buffalos (11-4-1, 5-3-0) will travel up I-10 following a 4-0 win at Arizona on Thursday night.
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