(Photo: Colin Thompson/WCSN)
Arizona State (8-5-1, 3-3-1) found its way into the NCAA playoff conversation after a weekend sweep against Washington State and the University of Washington. The Sun Devils hit the road for the last time in Pac-12 play to face off against Oregon (7-8-1,1-7-0) on Thursday and Oregon State (2-14-0, 1-7-0) on Sunday.
The Ducks are amidst a seven-match losing streak going into Thursday’s game in Eugene, struggling to find offensive production. Oregon has just one conference win, which came against Utah over a month ago. Since then, they have had 17 goals against while finding the back of the net four times.
The Ducks have faced persistent troubles since losing their leading goal scorer, senior forward Marissa Everett, due to a hamstring injury. Everett has missed the last five games and had paced the team in goals with six.
However, seniors Jazmin Jackmon and Bayley Bruner have stepped up in her absence, each tallying a goal an assist during their losing streak.
Guarding the goal, redshirt senior goalkeeper Halla Hinriksdottir has also held it down this season with five shutouts, ranking fifth in the Pac-12. However, she’s stumbled down recently, giving up an average of three goals per game over the Ducks last four contests.
Junior defender Alyssa Hinojosa has also made a name for herself on the team, playing every minute this season so far. Since her freshman campaign, she has only missed a combined total of 32 minutes of play, representing a reliable resource for the Ducks in the backfield.
The Ducks aren’t the only team struggling this season from the Beaver State.
The Oregon State Beavers have been in a slump of their own, losing the last four games in a row. Like the Ducks, the Beavers have only won one game in conference play so far.
Against the Sun Devils, Oregon State has netted 14 goals in total, while ASU has scored 25.
Looking back to their recent matchups, the last five times these teams have met, the game has gone in favor of the home team.
Most recently, last season, the Sun Devils defeated the Beavers 2-1 with goals from Jemma Purfield and Christina Edwards. Oregon State midfielder Diana Santiago gave her team hope with a late goal, but ASU prevailed over OSU in the end.
This year, the Beavers have struggled offensively with a total of just six goals this season so far. Two of those goals come from redshirt freshman forward McKenzie Weinert.
Redshirt junior forward Toni Malone has also been a key component to the Beaver’s team earning a start for every game.
Throughout the season, there have been 17 different starters that have led to 14 different starting lineups for this season.
Meanwhile, ASU has snapped their three-match losing streak last Thursday when they defeated Washington State. For the full 90 minutes, it was a physical match that reached its climax with a serious injury to one of the Cougar’s best players: Maddy Haro.
Sunday’s matchup against Washington wasn’t any prettier, but the Sun Devils managed to get the home sweep. ASU struggled to put up more numbers offensively in the second half after two goals from Nicole Douglas. However, the Sun Devils locked down on defense to secure the victory.
Nicole Douglas now has a team-high eight goals in 10 games. Senior captain Jemma Purfield has also been putting up impressive numbers with five assists and one goal in her final season dawning maroon and gold.
Goalkeepers Nikki Panas and Sydney Day have also only allowed 16 goals in 14 games, boasting an average of 1.14 goals allowed per game.
Senior defender Madison Wolf has also averaged a total of 90.6 minutes played in 14 games and leads the team in playing time.
The Sun Devils are ready to hit the road for one last time this regular season as they take on the Oregon Ducks on Thursday at 5 p.m. and the Oregon State Beavers on Sunday at 11 a.m.
