Freshman forward Carli Farquharson (17) leaps in the air for the ball during the Sun Devils’ meeting against Houston last Friday. (Photo by Kyle Newman)After last Sunday's 1-0 upset win over then-No. 10 Pepperdine, ASU women's soccer coach Kevin Boyd has made sure his team has maintained its concentration heading into this weekend's Cats Classic in Tucson.
“I want to make sure our team is focused on one game at a time, and we just need to put our best energy and best focus forward,” Boyd said. “We are just trying to build one piece at a time.”
The Sun Devils (2-4-1) played Sunday with junior forward Devin Marshall, a major piece offensively, for the first time in three games.
Marshall scored the lone goal for the Sun Devils against Pepperdine and Boyd knows how crucial the forward's health is to the team's success this weekend.
“It's great to have Devin on the field consistently,” Boyd said.
Boyd also changed the focus in practice this week to help ease the burden on Marshall and freshman forward Cali Farquharson.
“We are trying to continue what we have been doing and improve on the midfield joining the attack this week in practice,” Boyd said. “The win on Sunday validated a lot of work we have been doing, but we still have a long way to go.”
First up for the Sun Devils this weekend is Loyola Marymount, who last weekend tied No. 3 UCLA on the road.
Boyd knows the Lions (6-2-1), who also feature reigning WCC Player of the Week junior goalkeeper Brittany Jagger, will pose no easy task.
“LMU is a good team,” Boyd said. “They always play well, they are well coached and we know we have a challenge on our hands.”
This is only the third matchup between the two teams, with each team claiming a win in the first two matchups.
The Sun Devils then wrap up their weekend Sunday against Florida International.
In it's most recent match, FIU (3-2-1) beat Idaho 6-0 on a hat trick from junior forward Chelsea Leiva.
Leiva leads the Panthers with four goals and two assists on the year.
Reach the reporter at dsshapi1@asu.edu
