ASU Women’s Soccer: Sun Devil offense struggles against No. 16 UCLA

(Photo: Michael Gutnick/WCSN)

Following a heartbreaking last-minute loss to No. 5 USC on Thursday, Arizona State hoped to rebound with the same energy against No. 16 UCLA on Sunday.

However, ASU seemed to operate on a delayed fuse and didn’t begin proper offensive production until the second half, by which it was too late. The Sun Devils lost 4-1 and now stand at 6-4-2 overall and 0-2-1 in Pac-12 contests.

It was the Bruins who boasted the early energy, opening the scoring in less than two minutes when a corner kick attempt ping-ponged to the feet of junior midfielder Viviana Villacorta, who fired the shot home from just outside the penalty box.

UCLA continued to push the pace, following up with another goal six minutes later to put them ahead 2-0.

“We were beaten by the better team today,” coach Graham Winkworth said. “They started in a different system that they’ve not started in in the previous 11 games, so they threw something we weren’t expecting at us, and we did not handle that very well.”

Facing a system that they weren’t expecting, combined with the lingering effects of Thursday’s 2-1 loss to USC, ASU seemed taxed and lost. Little played in their favor and UCLA continued to pile on the pressure throughout the first 45 minutes.

ASU began the game with a trio of attackers, consisting of sophomore forwards Marleen Schimmer and Nicole Douglas, along with freshman Dai Williams. However, after the second goal, Williams was subbed out for freshman defender Nicole Soto for extra backline support.

Despite the defensive shift, it wasn’t long until the Bruins struck again, this time in the 18th minute by the foot of junior defender Karina Rodriguez, who slotted the ball home after receiving a pass off a set-piece just outside the penalty box.

“Regardless of game plans you’ve still got to work hard and we didn’t work hard,” Winkworth said about ASU’s first-half play. “We have to fight and we didn’t fight for the beginning of the match.”

UCLA maintained offensive dominance early in the second half by corralling several small ASU attacks and turning them into their own. Junior forward Ashley Sanchez was the final Bruin to score on the day, delivering a powerful strike from outside the box that screamed by ASU freshman keeper Giulia Cascapera.

Two minutes later, ASU found their stride on offense with a close opportunity from Williams in a one-on-one situation.

Shortly afterward, a crafty pass from sophomore midfielder Isabel Dehakiz found its way to Schimmer. The German sophomore fired an absolute rocket of a shot from over 30 yards away and found pay dirt to put the Sun Devils on the scoreboard.

“I just try to keep shooting, keep getting shots on the goal so we can score,” Schimmer said. “You can’t score goals if you don’t shoot on the goal.”

Schimmer’s second-half goal was her sixth of the season, good enough for second to Douglas’ team-leading eight goals. The German has acquired a liking of taking deep shots due to her special ability to control the perfect blend of bend and power to make the long-range snipes stick.

“Schim has got a special moment in her like that all the time and we give her a little bit more freedom than we do most players,” Winkworth said. “She can cause goalkeepers all sorts of problems.”

Following the loss, the Sun Devils will travel up north to Washington to face the Huskies on Thursday and the No. 14 Cougars of Washington State on Sunday. Thursday’s match kicks off at 7 p.m. and can be seen on Pac-12 Networks.