The UA Wildcats narrowly defeated the San Diego State Aztecs by the score of 1-0 Friday evening during the Sun Devil Desert Classic Soccer Tournament.
The Wildcats now move to 4-0 on the season while the Aztecs fall to 2-2. The 4-0 start for the Wildcats matches a school record.
Sophomore midfielder Gabi Stoian scored the only goal for the Wildcats. Off an Aztec turnover in the ninth minute, senior forward Hannah Wong collected the ball and sent it to Stoian, who went in alone on goal and tapped it into the left side of the net.
“It was a great ball from Hannah Wong,” Stoian said. “She found me open out wide and we just defended hard from there and closed the game out.”
Stoian’s goal was her fourth on the year.
“I can’t do it alone,” Stoian said. “It’s really a team effort. I owe it to them.”
UA freshman goalkeeper Lainey Burdett notched the shutout, her third in four games and second in a row.
“It’s awesome but I couldn’t have done it without my team,” Burdett said. “They all grinded and defended but it’s nice getting the shutout, especially being a freshman and everything.”
UA head coach Tony Amato said the key throughout his team’s winning streak has been hard work.
“I think our girls are working extremely hard,” Amato said. “We worked extremely hard, defended well to get the shutout, and Gabi is a very good player who was able to win us a game with a goal so you put all those things together and it’s a good formula for us.”
On the 4-0 start to the year, the Wildcat defense has only conceded one goal.
“Our defenders were starting to get worn down a little bit and they were able to fight through that with some resiliency that I thought ended up winning us the game," Amato said.
Next on the calendar for the Wildcats is the Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Amato coached the Ladyjacks from 2010-2012.
“It’s a little more awkward in the beginning because I know the players, I love the program, I loved my time there and they gave me an unbelievable opportunity to be there and coach,” Amato said. “It’s an awesome place but once the game starts, I’m Arizona through and through trying to win that game and back our players 100 percent to find a way to get the win.”
The Aztecs return to San Diego to take on Florida Gulf Coast on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. PT.
Reach the reporter at michael.baron@asu.edu or follow @Michael_Baron96 on Twitter.
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