(Photo: Michael Gutnick/WCSN)
Arizona State soccer (6-6-3, 0-4-2) will begin their final homestand of the 2019 regular season on Thursday evening against Oregon State (9-3-2, 1-3-2).
Coming off a tough road loss against Colorado, the Sun Devils, who still remain winless in the Pac-12, look to rebound against the Beavers, who only hold one conference win to their name.
Arizona State’s offensive struggles continued against Colorado, as they were shut out for the majority of the contest. However, freshman forward Dai Williams broke ASU’s scoring deadlock dating back to Oct. 6 against UCLA, with a strike in the 78th minute to put them on the board.
Along with offensive problems, another significant issue giving the Sun Devils grief is their inconsistency on defense at the beginning of the match. In every conference game ASU has played, with the exception of Washington State, the Sun Devils have conceded at least one goal to opponents within the first 20 minutes of the contest. Against USC, UCLA, Washington and Colorado, the Sun Devils allowed a goal within the first five minutes.
By finding themselves in the hole early, ASU’s offense seldom has the opportunity to work while being ahead, adding extra pressure to their efforts to play catch up. As a nine-win Oregon State squad comes to Tempe, it is paramount for Arizona State to buckle down early.
Oregon State’s lone victory in conference play was a hearty 2-1 road win over the aforementioned Buffaloes, which came on Oct. 6. Since that win, they are 0-2-1 with losses to No. 2 Stanford and Washington, with a draw against Cal.
The Beavers currently sit in ninth place in the Pac-12 standings, while the Sun Devils remain in last place in the conference.
Oregon State’s offense primarily works through their two forwards, redshirt sophomore Mckenzie Weinert and freshman Brianna Mcreynolds, who lead the team with 18 and 15 points, respectively. Sophomore goalkeeper Bridgette Skiba has been stellar for OSU this season, with 47 saves and a 0.76 save percentage.
As far as history goes for the two sides, Arizona State holds a narrow advantage with a 7-6-1 record against OSU. ASU dominated in the last season’s contest in Corvallis with a strong 4-0 victory on Oct. 28, 2018.
The Sun Devils and Beavers square off on Thursday at 5:00 p.m. MST at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium and can be seen on Pac-12 Networks.
