Coming off a phenomenal win Friday night, ASU was back at Sun Devil Soccer Stadium less than 24 hours later to take on Beijing Normal University in an exhibition match.
The Sun Devils (2-0-1) were defeated 1-0 after a late goal by Beijing Normal.
The game, though not counted towards the Sun Devils official record, proved to be a valuable learning experience. Head Coach Kevin Boyd played 19 Sun Devils, with 16 recording more than 30 minutes of playing time.
“Today's game is a little bit tricky on our end just because finishing one game just 14 hours ago and then starting the next one is less than ideal,” Boyd said. “It is also a nice opportunity to not only play a team from another country, but for us to give people a chance to play that need to develop and that’s what we were focusing on.”
Freshman forward/midfielder Christina Edwards played exceptionally well during the match with 42 minutes of playing time and one shot on goal.
Edwards credits her teammates for pushing her athletically and making her transition smoother than imagined.
“The Pac-12 conference is one of the best in the country so we’ve been working out since May and putting in early morning hours, and I think that fitness has translated onto the field,” Edwards said. “Even as a freshman getting the chance to play with these amazing athletes has improved me.”
ASU dominated the stats sheet in the first half with eight shots, five of which being on goal. Beijing Normal recorded only three shots on goal.
“Today's game was not for us to put our starting line out and drive for the win, that’s not what we were going for, we were very much looking to improve our game,” Boyd said.
In the 70th minute, ASU was gifted with a penalty kick after a foul by Beijing Normal.
Sophomore defender Melinda Gutierrez took the penalty kick but couldn't make it count as the BNU goalkeeper an easy save.
Junior midfielder Madison Kmetko played a wholesome 81 minutes and logged three shots, two being on goal. Kmetko looked ready from the first whistle, and gave her team credit for the effort put into the game.
“I think we were a little tired but we have two days of recovery so I think that will be good for us, but I still think we came out hard and did the best that we could,” Kmetko said.
Beijing Normal would record the only goal of the game in the 71st minute.
Miscommunication from ASU’s defensive line allowed Beijing Normal’s forward Lyu Yueyun to rip a shot right past sophomore goalkeeper Sydney Day.
Beijing Normal University would hold on the rest of the way to hand the Sun Devils a 1-0 loss.
Kmetko had high praise for the freshman class and their abilities to contribute to the team right away.
“The freshmen are incredible, I would say out of all the freshmen class this one has come in the most prepared, Kmetko said. “I think they know what they’re doing out there just as much as some of our veterans.”
Boyd said the offense will be the focus moving forward after the exhibition game, while also making little tweaks to the defense.
“The offense is where all our attention needs to go, we need to keep the ball better, our attack needs significant work and we need our personality players that exist on this team to become personality players and they aren’t right now,” Boyd said. “It’s a lot of normal early year issues, but 2-0-1 there’s nothing wrong with that.”
ASU will now get a few days off before hosting the Sun Devil Desert Classic Friday, Sept. 2 in Tempe.
Reach the reporter at kcvalen1@asu.edu or follow @kvalenzuela17 on Twitter.
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