(Photo: Steve Rodriguez/ASU Athletics)
For the first time in four years, the Arizona State women’s soccer team is finally getting recognition from the polls.
Last week, ASU came in at No. 24. After Friday’s tie against top ranked UCLA, ASU is now No. 18.
“Honestly, it’s about time that we’re ranked,” said junior forward Cali Farquharson, who leads the team with nine goals this season.
The last time that the Sun Devils were among the top 25 teams in the nation was in September of 2010 when they were briefly ranked 19th and 21st in consecutive weeks.
In the years following that season ASU has had capable teams on the verge of cracking the top 25, but those teams fell a little bit short.
Just last season, the Sun Devils were ranked 26th in the country, but then suffered a loss that dashed their hopes of making it into the polls.
This season seems to be taking a different route.
So far, ASU (7-1-2) has proven itself a top competitor, defeating then-ranked No. 6 Texas A&M and tying the number one team in the country.
A portion of their success is due to the strong discipline in the back line. The Sun Devils have shut out four out of their last 10 opponents, and have only conceded more than two goals once all season. In total they have only let in 10 goals this season.
Yet, the biggest reason why ASU has seemed to finally break out of its rut is the team’s ability to score goals.
ASU is second in the Pac-12 and 13th in the country for most goals scored with 28 goals this season.
That’s two more than they scored all last season.
“We’ve been playing really well, and it really just shows who we are as a program,” Farquharson said.
Still, the Sun Devils are no strangers to losing momentum as the season progresses.
During their last ranked season, ASU started the year with a seven game undefeated streak. From there, the Sun Devils only managed three more wins, finishing the season with a 9-8-3 record.
If ASU wants a different outcome than that season, it will have to keep playing hard and not let the rankings make them over-confident.
Head coach Kevin Boyd said that’s exactly what they are doing. He says the recognition is something that he’s happy about, but it definitely is not something that the team is focusing on.
“The ranking isn’t what drives us by any means. What drives us is how we’re playing, and trying to win every game that we play,” Boyd said.
ASU will take the pitch again on Friday, as they take on Oregon at Sun Devil Stadium. They will follow that up with another home game on Sunday, this time against Oregon State.
