After coming off of a 2-1 loss to the University of Central Florida last weekend, the ASU women’s soccer team was back in action Friday night facing Texas Tech.
The first 10 minutes of the match remained scoreless for both teams, but it was ASU that struck first following two corner kicks by sophomore defender Devyn Kelsey and junior defender Jemma Purfield.
Sophomore forward Christina Edwards was able to gather the ball after the second corner from Purfield and get ASU their first goal of the day.
The Red Raiders responded rapidly with a header by freshman forward Ally Griffin in the 15th minute off of sophomore midfielder Jordie Harr’s corner kick .
Both teams went back and forth attempting shots; Texas Tech lead with seven attempts compared to ASU's four. On the defensive end however, the Sun Devils were able to remain strong thanks to freshman goalkeeper Nikki Panas.
In the second half, things got heated on the pitch and Texas Tech's junior midfielder Carly Wickenheiser received a red card in the 51st minute. Tensions flared again in the 78th minute when ASU senior forward Jessica Raybe was given a yellow card.
ASU senior defender Madison Stark took the first shot of the second half, but the kick went wide of the net. ASU was able to stay consistent on defense thanks to another key save by Panas.
However, the Red Raiders finally broke through and struck again in the 87th minute when Griffin turned and shot from the 18, giving Texas Tech a 2-1 lead that would hold for the rest of the game.
Head coach Graham Winkworth spoke on Panas' performance.
"Nikki's a good goalkeeper, so she was prepared, but I'm going to have to go back and look at the goals because the ball (is) going to the back of the net too easily," Winkworth said.
Overall, Winkworth said that once Kelsey came out of the game, the momentum of the match changed, and that is something they need to fix in order to be successful.
"If one player comes out, another needs to step up," Winkworth said. "We need to work harder to find those players within our squad to make that happen."
Already looking ahead to their match on Sunday against Florida Gulf Coast, Winkworth said that the team needs to show more composure with the ball in order to get a different result.
"The beginning of the half we controlled possession, in the beginning of the second half we controlled the ball," Winkworth said. "We didn't show composure in the midfield or anywhere to keep possession for long enough."
The ASU women's soccer team looks to turn things around on Sunday at 3 p.m. when they face Florida Gulf Coast in Tucson.
Reach the reporter at klbroder@asu.edu or follow @KellyB1459 on Twitter.
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