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In its final preparation before Pac-10 play, the ASU women's soccer team faces off against NAU (3-6-0) this Sunday at Sun Devil Soccer stadium.

The Sun Devils (6-1-2) are red hot entering the 1 p.m. contest, shutting out each of their last five opponents. ASU can go for a school record with another shutout this weekend, as the five straight shutouts tied a 7-year program record, set originally in 2000.

Last weekend the Sun Devils swept a pair of games on the road when defeating the University of Georgia 2-0 and Auburn University 1-0.

Freshman forward Elizabeth Bogus stole the show with all three goals, giving her two more game winners and placing her in second all-time for a single season in that category.

Bogus continues to lead the team in both goals and points with eight and 13 respectively. The 3-goal performance over the weekend gave her Pac-10 Women's Soccer player of the week honors.

"[Others] have been giving her good services," ASU head coach Ray Leone said. "They're giving her much better balls than at the beginning and she's creating better chances for herself."

She was the second straight Sun Devil to earn the honor after freshman midfielder Brittany Cooper won it the week of Sept. 17-23. Cooper added to her assist total with one against Auburn, tying her for the team lead with four. Freshman midfielder Manya Makoski also has four assists.

The two wins also vaulted the Sun Devils back into the rankings, re-entering for the first time since September 8 when they lost 2-1 in overtime to Southern Methodist University. They are ranked No. 16 by Soccer America Magazine.

"We have a long way to go," Leone said. "We're not playing nearly where we're capable of going. We're going to have to play a lot better if we want to be successful."

Although the backbone of the Sun Devil teams appears to be in the strong goalkeeping by sophomore Kelly Fitzgerald, Leone emphasizes that it's a team effort in addition to her play in goal.

"It's team connection," he said. "Kelly is very connected with the back line and that makes it to where she doesn't have shots against her. But she has to be ready to be called upon."

Still, the numbers don't lie. Fitzgerald has played 853:20 allowing just five goals for a 0.53 goals against average. Her 39 saves in 44 shots on goal give her a save percentage of .886. On top of all this, she's racked up four shutouts and would have had five but gave way to backup freshman Hilary Wilson late in a 3-0 win over Nevada-Las Vegas two weeks ago.

This weekend NAU does not pose one of the more difficult challenges the Sun Devils have had to face in recent matches, but Leone said he does not want to take them lightly.

"It's a west region game and they're going to give us their best effort," Leone said. "They are hard working, well coached and they're going to bring fans and energy to the game."

Reach the reporter at casey.pritchard@asu.edu.


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