Photo: Mason Chiu/WCSN
TEMPE – It was all smiles for Arizona State soccer head coach Graham Winkworth as the clock struck triple zeros. It signaled the end of the Sun Devils’ final non-conference game, as they’ll turn their attention to Big 12 play.
It also signaled the confirmation of a bounceback after losing to UNC, ASU’s first defeat of the season. The bounceback for the Sun Devils (5-1-2) came in an 8-0 thrashing over Grambling State (1-5-1).
“It’s all the tough practices, the practices after the games,” Peyton Marcisz said. “You know when we are all tired, or the really hard practice we had two days ago.”
In the first half, the Sun Devils showed their commitment to attacking by taking 18 shots, with 11 ending on target. Sunday against North Carolina, the lack of shots ultimately cost them a chance at a major upset victory.
“I was pleased that we were hitting the target, and we got our reward for that,” Winkworth said.
Winkworth was clear about where the loss against UNC stemmed from – their inability to get into an offensive flow. Only one of three shot attempts was on target.
“Today we hit 50% of our shots on goal,” Winkworth said. “If we do that the rest of the season, we give ourselves a good chance”
The goals came from a variety of players, as six different Sun Devils got on the score sheet. Marcisz was one of two players alongside senior midfielder Emmie Ennis to score twice.
“That’s my first brace in my college career, but it’s also special because it’s senior night which means a lot, because it’s truly my last year of soccer,” Marcisz said.
The first goal came in the 17th minute, as senior midfielder Emmie Ennis got on the end of a ball from junior forward Kierra Blundell for Ennis’ second goal of the season. This sent a warning to Grambling State that they were in for a long night.
Two minutes later, the Sun Devils put Grambling State’s defense in a blender. All of a sudden, Marcisz found her first goal, after a beautiful cross inside by defender Mya Agnus.
Now up 2-0, ASU’s attack continued to roll, as Marcisz would soon find her second goal of the game.
“I was so happy when the second one came,” Marcisz said.
When the first half was all said and done, it was all Sun Devils. Grambling State wasn’t even able to take a shot, with goalkeeper Kennedy Zorn barely lifting a finger en route to a 4-0 lead.
The second half was a lot different for the Tigers. They seemed to have figured out how to get the offense rolling, as ASU removed multiple starters from the field. Yet, ASU would still keep its foot on the gas pedal.
“Second half, they came out and they gave us a little less respect, and that opened the game up, so we created a lot more chances in the second half” Winkworth said.
Grambling State’s only mission for the rest of the game was to try and make some noise, and add a goal or two in the last 45 minutes of the game.
The Sun Devils, however, perceived their effort to be commendable, but simply not enough as the goals kept on pouring in for the Sun Devils.
Junior forward Sierra Bergen found the back of the net just three minutes into the second half, as ASU’s attack kept going.
Looking ahead, the Big 12 is as broad as it seems, and at any moment anyone can beat anyone.
“There’s a lot of parity,” Winkworth said.
However, Winkworth believes strongly in his team, and their ability to compete based on their last few outings is something that cannot go unnoticed.
“I think last week will probably give us more belief than even today’s result,” Winkworth said. “But we know we can play with anybody, and so we look forward to having Utah come into town and giving them a good match next week.”
