Junior defender Jasmine Roth gets set to kick the ball downfield during the Sun Devils’ 5-4 double overtime win over USC on Sept. 28. (Photo by Kyle Newman)After a successful weekend on the road against the Oregon schools, ASU soccer coach Kevin Boyd can see the light at the end of the tunnel for his Sun Devil squad.
If they win another weekend, this time at home against Colorado and Utah, the Sun Devils (7-8-2, 3-4-1 Pac-12) will be in prime position to make their third NCAA postseason appearance in the last four years.
Boyd is grateful that the Sun Devils can control their own destiny, but understands the road ahead of them will be challenging.
“It’s great that our fate is in our hands,” Boyd said. “It won’t be easy though, because as much as we know that, so does our opponents Thursday and Sunday. They are in the same spot and are all playing for something, so it’s going to be the same battle like every other week.”
Thursday’s opponent, Utah (8-6-2, 3-5-0 Pac-12), is coming off a pair of losses against UCLA and USC and leads the all-time series against the Sun Devils 3-2.
Led by redshirt freshman goalkeeper Lindsay Luke, whose 0.97 goals-against average is No. 4 in the conference, the Utes are looking to rebound and keep their postseason hopes alive as well.
“Utah is good,” Boyd said. “They seem to be a solid team and are dead-even with us, so it’s a big game.”
Sunday’s opponent, Colorado (7-7-3, 1-6-1 Pac-12), is led by junior forward Anne Stuller, who leads the team with eight goals on the season.
The Buffaloes are coming off their first Pac-12 win of the season, defeating USC 1-0 on the road in double overtime.
Regardless of their Pac-12 record, Boyd is still impressed with the Buffaloes’ grittiness.
“They’ve played every Pac-12 game to a close result,” Boyd said. “It’s going to be a tough game.”
In order for the Sun Devils to come out of the weekend with their desired results, Boyd knows the Sun Devils are going to have to limit their mistakes and attack both opponents’ weaknesses.
“We aren’t teaching anything new right now,” Boyd said. “We refine what we do. We are just trying to get better at the things we do. When we get in these games, there are certain things we want to exploit and bring out of the game, and that’s what we are going to do.”
Reach the reporter at dsshapi1@asu.edu
