And the 16-year drought continues.
ASU soccer took on No. 11 UCLA Thursday evening in Los Angeles to open Pac-12 conference play, losing 2-0.
Heading into the game, the Sun Devils (5-3-1, 0-1 Pac-12) series history against the Bruins (7-2, 1-0 Pac-12) was anything but pretty, holding a record of 1-16-2 with ASU’s only win against UCLA dating back to 2000.
Head coach Kevin Boyd said that he doesn’t feel pressure when seeing the streak his team has with UCLA.
“I felt like we were due,” Boyd said. “But I think some of our players just got really nervous and froze up on us."
ASU knew this away game would be a big test and the Bruins’ 5th and 9th minute goals presented an early challenge.
UCLA freshman midfielder Jessie Fleming proved to be ASU’s kryptonite after she scored both goals for the Bruins in short order.
The first goal in the 5th minute came from a cross that got through the Sun Devil defense, allowing Fleming to find the back of the net.
Her second goal of the evening came just three minutes later when she took a long-distance shot that landed in the upper left corner of the goal.
The first nine minutes of the match would hold all the scoring for the rest of the game.
“They were all over us and we made them look really good in the first half,” Boyd said.
Freshman Emma Malsy stayed busy in goal for ASU in the first half, recording five saves off of UCLA’s nine shots.
“I thought she made a couple of tremendous saves,” Boyd said. “My assessment of her on the night was outstanding.”
The Sun Devil offense struggled and took no shots in the first 45 minutes of play.
ASU returned to the field in the second half appearing more confident in their play, but they needed a pair of goals and a spark just to keep them afloat.
“We looked liked us in the second half and I thought we played very well and were aggressive,” Boyd said. “We just couldn’t get the ball to go in the net.”
The Sun Devils brought on incredible pressure throughout the second half in the form of multiple headers, four consecutive corner kicks and five on-goal shots.
Boyd said it wasn’t just one player but many who stepped up their game in the second half.
“I think that can be a strength of ours,” he said.
The second half was played with grit and determination as ASU came back and took 13 shots, five of them being on goal.
However, the Sun Devils couldn’t string anything together and lost by a final of 2-0.
“We need to have that fire and do all the things that make us who we are,” Boyd said.
ASU will return home to Sun Devil Soccer Stadium on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. to host Utah.
Reach the reporter at kcvalen1@asu.edu or follow @kvalenzuela17 on Twitter.
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