(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
After a frustrating draw on Friday night against Boston University, the Arizona State Sun Devils soccer team looked to rebound against the University of Central Florida Sunday afternoon. The 24th-ranked UCF Knights outplayed them all game long, however, as ASU fell by a final score of 2-1 in the last game of the Sun Devil Desert Classic.
The Knights jumped out early, applying significant pressure on the Devils and controlling possession, allowing them to move the game at their own pace, a very physical one at that. For every bit of pressure put on by UCF, the Sun Devils countered back, with the defense keeping them in the match throughout the first 45 minutes, limiting their opponent in shots.
UCF attempted to prevent ASU from moving the ball all match long, as the Knights consistently found open space and made it difficult for the Devils to find each other, sending them off balance all afternoon.
While the Sun Devils caught some lucky breaks throughout the 90-minutes played on Sunday, a large portion of the competition can be accredited to freshman goalkeeper Nikki Panas, playing in her third game of the season.
“Nikki’s done a great job, she’s a very confident goalkeeper and that’s really important,” captain Madison Stark told the media. “I think she does well with her feet and she has a big presence in the goal so it’s a good thing.”
Facing 16 shots over the course of the game and making three saves, Panas used her athleticism to make several impressive blocks and stops all over the field.
A relaxed style of soccer from ASU in the first half kept the contest close, as the score was tied at 0 when the first 45 minutes had concluded.
The Devils came out slow in the second half, which quickly proved to hurt them as barely 60 seconds into the second half, UCF’s Dina Orschmann broke the scoreless tie with her second goal of the season, turning the match’s momentum in favor of the Knights.
UCF took full advantage of that momentum, riding it through a second goal that was scored less than 10 minutes later, forcing the Sun Devils to push harder in the heat.
“That first goal, 56 seconds, whatever it was into the second half, completely changed the game,” head coach Graham Winkworth admitted. “When they went two-up, we threw everything at them… We did throw everything but the kitchen sink at them and it wasn’t quite enough on the day, but I was proud of the girls’ character and the fight in very hot conditions.”
The second goal was enough for UCF to hold off the Devils, despite a late score from ASU’s Jemma Purfield, the first of the season for the junior transfer from South Alabama. Purfield’s goal put the Sun Devils on the board, making the score 2-1, but it would hold, leading to the team’s second loss of the season.
“It’s a honor, I was really happy with that,” Purfield commented following the loss. “It’s always nice to get off the mark, goal-scoring wise. Obviously disappointed again not to get a result but, really happy with the goal and as a team, we’re going to come together and build and get ready to go again next weekend.”
Despite the drastic momentum shift early in the second half, the Devils continued to battle, using all the effort they could.
“I think it just shows we have a lot of heart,” Stark said. “We didn’t quit and we didn’t give up and we worked out way back into this game and it just shows the character that this team has and we’re willing to fight.”
While the Sun Devils never quit, physicality increased as the game wound down, leading to a style that disappointed ASU’s head coach.
“I don’t want to play the way we played,” Winkworth stated after the game. “From an effort standpoint, I want to play the way we played at the end of the game, from a soccer standpoint I don’t want to play that way, I want to play a better style of soccer than that.”
Arizona State will regroup and head to Tucson next weekend for the University of Arizona Tournament, where they will play Texas Tech and Florida Gulf Coast on Friday and Sunday, respectively.
Nicholas Badders is a contributor to the Walter Cronkite Sports Network. You can reach him on Twitter @BadderUpSports.
