(Photo: Sun Devil Athletics)
Despite being amid non-conference play, Arizona State women’s lacrosse faced a familiar foe on Sunday morning.
The Sun Devils took on No. 11 Florida at Sun Devil Soccer and Lacrosse Stadium, in their third matchup against the Gators in the past two years. Florida won both previous meetings, with the Orange and Blue upended the Maroon and Gold 21-10 in Tempe two years ago before beating them 17-12 last year in Gainesville.
The Gators (3-2) continued their dominance over ASU (3-3) on Sunday morning, beating the team from Tempe 22-6.
“You’re playing at a higher level,” ASU head coach Taryn VanThof said. “To be the best, you have to beat the best. So, for us, it was a tough turnaround. But at that same time, it’s gonna prepare us for Pac-12 (competition) down the road.”
Both teams started the game physically, with four green cards in the opening 15 minutes. Additionally, six of the first seven goals were scored from either a man-up position and/or a free-position shot. The Gators finished with a 3-0 run in the last five minutes to lead 5-3 at the end of the first quarter.
The Orange and Blue extended its momentum in the next 15 minutes. They added nine more goals and forced the game into a running clock with 3:45 remaining in the half. The Gators headed back to the locker room up 14-4 after the Sun Devils scored seconds before the buzzer.
“We didn’t play Sun Devils’ lacrosse,” VanThof said about her team’s second quarter performance. “We came out flat. It wasn’t our best performance in terms of team defense, and I think we’ve got to get back to that.”
Florida continued its dominance in the second half. The visitors outscored the hosts 4-1 in the third and fourth quarters. The Gators are now 3-0 against the Sun Devils, as the head-to-head series shifts to in-conference play next year with both teams joining the Big 12.
The girls from Gainesville registered 37 shots with 31 of them being on target. On the other side, ASU posted 21 shots and 18 shots on goal. Additionally, the Gators outshot the Sun Devils 15-3 in the second quarter. The Orange and Blue also went 6-for-6 on free-position shots while the Maroon and Gold went 2-for-3.
Florida also won the draw control battle 16-11, including a 7-2 mark in the second quarter. The girls from Gainesville picked up 12 saves while their opponent had nine.
14 Gators scored on Sunday morning. Two attackers, senior Danielle Pavinelli and sophomore Gianna Monaco, recorded hat-tricks. Pavinelli replicated her four-goal performance against Jacksonville on Feb. 28 for her second hat-trick of the season, while Monaco notched her first career hat-trick with three goals. Additionally, graduate midfielder Emily Heller, graduate midfielder Paisley Eagan, and junior midfielder Josie Hahn tallied two goals.
Non-starters played a key role in Florida’s offensive production, scoring 11 times. This included scoring all the Gators’ goals in the fourth quarter. Overall, Florida head coach Amanda O’Leary gave 18 players playing time off the bench.
“(The) threats (are) all over the field, but that’s where we have to be confident and own our individual play along with our collective play,” VanThof said. “I think we faltered a little bit in stepping up to the plate in some aspects, and I think we learned a lot from today’s game.”
Sophomore attacker Lydia Oldknow was the only Sun Devil to find the back of the net multiple times. She scored three goals, netting her third hat-trick of 2024, and her first since the season’s opening weekend against Xavier and Niagara.
As Florida extended its lead, VanThof took out her starter, junior goalkeeper Katie Vahle, to bring on senior Flynn Murphy and freshman Sara Flobeck.
Murphy replaced Vahle late in the second quarter. After allowing two goals, Murphy was called back to the sidelines after less than four minutes of playing time.
Flobeck replaced Murphy with 6:57 remaining in the fourth quarter, manning the cage for the remainder of the game. While she did concede three goals, Flobeck saved one shot.
The Sun Devils return to action on Mar. 10 in Nashville when they take on Vanderbilt (3-1) at 11 a.m. MST. It will be the second game the Commodores play that week, as they will visit No. 15 John Hopkins on Wednesday.
For VanThof, next Sunday’s matchup provides a chance to notch a victory after a winless stretch against a ranked opponent. More importantly, it gives ASU a chance to return to the program’s identity.
“You looked at some good games and some non Sun Devil play,” VanThof said. “But when you look at the Sun Devil lacrosse, when we played Sun Devil lacrosse, we’re gonna go places. We gotta take away the good, we gotta learn from the bad, and we gotta move forward.”
