Freshman defender Madison Stark slots home the winning goal inside the 18 yard box during the ASU vs Arizona soccer game on Friday, Nov. 7, 2014. Her strike helped seal a 1-0 Sun Devil victory. (Photo by Daniel Kwon)For almost the entire season, ASU soccer has relied on two stars to drive its offensive success: junior forward Cali Farquharson and freshman forward Aly Moon.
The two dynamic scorers had accounting for 24 of ASU's 40 regular season goals (14 from Farquharson and 10 from Moon).
But as the Sun Devils prepare for their second playoff game, this one against Kentucky, they have other players to thank for getting them there.
Although the impact of ASU's central threats hasn't been negligible (Moon scored two goals in ASU's playoff win), three crucial ASU goals have all come off the feet of players scoring for the first time.
In the last game of the regular season, freshman defender Madison Stark found the back of the net in the 20th minute of the game.
The goal was the first of Stark's college career, and it was the only point in a Territorial Cup victory that essentially clinched a playoff spot for the team.
In the first game of the playoffs, against NAU, senior defender Brianna Gonzalez and junior midfielder Whitney Kanavel accounted for two of ASU's four goals.
The goals were the first of both players' careers.
And so while Moon and Farquharson carried this team throughout the regular season and got it to where it stands today, it has been unheralded contributors who have pushed ASU over the top when the team was most in need of that boost.
Farquharson left the game against NAU in just the 15th minute and would not return. Head coach Kevin Boyd gave no indication of the nature or severity of the injury but indicated the team hopes to have her back for its next game.
If Farquharson isn't ready to go against Kentucky, or isn't her usual self, it could be a big problem for the Sun Devils.
But the recent trend of contribution from all levels of the depth chart means this team is a dangerous one, with or without its stars.
Reach the sports editor at icbeck@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @ICBeck21
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