(Photo via Xavier Litman/WCSN)
After a late collapse against the Oregon Ducks on Friday in Eugene, Arizona State Women’s Lacrosse’s (4-10, 3-6 Pac-12) struggles appeared to carry over to Boulder early in Sunday’s contest against the Colorado Buffaloes.
After getting outscored 6-3 in the first quarter, the Sun Devils would go on to lose to the Buffaloes (7-6, 5-2) 15-12. ASU was able to recover in the second half by only allowing four goals in the last 30 minutes, but it was not enough as Colorado’s offense scored plenty in the first half to lead the Buffaloes to victory.
A major reason for Colorado’s hot start was sixth-year attacker Sam McGee, who scored her career-high in goals with six in Tempe on March 26 and tallied four goals in Boulder on Sunday. The senior was shut out in the first quarter but still managed to notch her hat trick within the last four minutes of the first half.
Another key contributor for Colorado was fifth-year attacker and team-leading goal scorer Charlie Rudy. Coming off her seven-goal performance against USC on Friday, Rudy scored another hat trick – which she has done in all but one game this season – against the Sun Devils. Rudy ranks seventh in the nation with 3.73 goals per game and has scored a career-high 51 goals so far this season.
Rudy and McGee may have led the Buffaloes in goals, but junior midfielder Ashley Stokes had a game-high seven points against the Sun Devils. The junior broke her previous career-high in points with six against Cal on March 19 and a big reason why was because of her five assists, which is also a career-high for the midfielder.
While Colorado had balanced scoring, ASU had a clear leader in the goals department. Junior attacker Mina Scott scored a hat trick – her third of the season – with a career-high five goals against the Buffaloes. The Pennsylvania native was contained in the last matchup against Colorado, only scoring one goal in that game.
Graduate attacker Katie Brodsky also scored a hat trick, which was her first of the season for the Sun Devils. The graduate student has scored multiple goals six times this season, but Sunday was the first time she was able to get that coveted third goal.
Graduate midfielder Kaylon Buckner and freshman attacker Teagan Ng have led the Sun Devils in scoring this season, but neither were able to put the ball in the back of the net against the Buffaloes. Both had a couple assists, but the Colorado defense was able to hold ASU’s top scorers goalless on Sunday.
The Sun Devils will continue their road trip against San Diego State and UC Davis with both non-conference games being played in San Diego on April 21 and 23. The Aztecs and Aggies will be joining the Pac-12 Conference next year as women’s lacrosse affiliates, making the upcoming matchups a preview for what ASU could see next season.
