(Photo: Patricia Vicente/WCSN)
On Friday, the No. 21 Arizona State women’s soccer team defeated No. 3 UCLA by a score of 2-1 in overtime. This was the first win for the Sun Devils over the Bruins since 2000 and the second win over the Bruins in program history.
The game kicked off in the 17th minute with UCLA freshman Kaila Novak scoring her first collegiate goal. The play started with sophomore Mia Fishel receiving the ball on the right side of the box with her back to the goal. She turned and tried to finesse the ball into the bottom left corner, but it bounced off the post.It next landed at the feet of Novak who fired the ball into the back of the net.
The Sun Devils equalized in the 82nd minute when junior Olivia Nguyen sent in a low cross inside the six-yard box. The Bruins defense could not get control of the ball and knocked it into their own net. There was a brief moment of confusion and silence before the referee blew his whistle giving ASU the goal.
Right after in the 83rd minute, senior Kennedy Faulknor received a red card, leaving UCLA with only 10 players in the field for the rest of the game.
The Sun Devils took advantage of being a player up in their third overtime period of the season. Just nine minutes into overtime, junior Cori Sullivan found the back of the net. She was assisted by a cross from fellow junior Nicole Douglas, who found Sullivan wide open at the back post. After Sullivan tapped the ball into the net, she ran with her arms in the air towards the team as they huddled around her in joy.
Exactly nine months ago to the day, Sullivan had surgery after suffering an ACL injury. Sullivan became a starter with the Sun Devils for the first time since November 4th, 2018 against Stanford. This was the fourth game Sullivan has played in the season and her first goal of the season, which couldn’t have come at a better time for the Sun Devils.
Throughout the game, both teams struggled to put the ball on frame. ASU ended the game with 12 shots, but only five were on target. UCLA finished with 15 shots, with only three troubled sophomore goalkeeper Giulia Cascapera.
The Sun Devils look to continue their strong season with a record of 7-1-2 and now move up into third place in the Pac-12. ASU will be back at Sun Devils Stadium on Friday, April 2nd as they take on the University of California.
