Lacrosse Upends No. 20 USC
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – It was an afternoon full of first at McAlister Field as the Sun Devil Lacrosse team defeated No. 20 USC, 20-9, on Friday.
Arizona State (4-2, 2-1 Pac-12) picked up the first victory over at Top-20 team in program history, snapping the Trojans eight-game home winning streak in the process.
"This was a great team effort," Head Coach Tim McCormack observed. "We had a great week of preparation leading up to it."
It was a monumental victory for Coach McCormack's squad, who scored 20 goals for the fourth time this season and the sixth time in his tenure. The 20 goals matched the most that USC had allowed in a game ever, a total only reached by No. 2-ranked Boston College in the 2017 NCAA Quarterfinals.
Reigning Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week Kerri Clayton led the way with a magnificent performance, finishing with 11 points (6 goals & 5 assists). She received plenty of offensive support, as fellow attackers Emily Glagolev (7 points) and Carley Adams (6 points) were active and productive.
"It feels awesome," graduate attacker Kerri Clayton remarked. "The entire game from start to finish it was just so much fun, from the draw, to huge D stops, and playing our games on attack."
In the previous five matchups since the program started in Tempe back in 2018, USC had outscored ASU 83-25. However, the result was very different with Coach McCormack in charge.
The Sun Devils forced a running clock midway through the second half in the two sides first meeting of 2021, only the second time that an opponent had accomplished that feat against the Trojans at McAlister Field. The only other team to achieve a double-digit lead in a road matchup with USC was Northwestern way back in the Trojans' first game as a program in 2013.
After the Maroon & Gold jumped out to a 11-6 halftime lead, Berkeley Bonneau and the rest of the defensive unit stepped it up in the second half, sensing the victory within reach. ASU outscored USC 9-3 over the final 30 minutes, including a stretch of seven unanswered goals. It was a total team effort, as eight players recorded a point, seven earned a draw control, and ten collected a ground ball. Bonneau was a stabilizing force in net, making 11 saves and fighting for three ground balls in a determined effort.
"It feels incredible to finally put on display and come away with a W after all of the hard work we have put in," graduate goalkeeper Berkeley Bonneau stated. "Especially after COVID, we never let up and we knew we had something to prove and we did it."
TURNING POINT
A close game over the course of the opening 30 minutes changed dramatically because of the way the Sun Devils finished the first and opened the second halves. Leading 9-6, the Sun Devils scored the final two goals of the first half in addition to tallying the first two goals of the second half. This extended their lead to 13-6, the largest of the game.
USC scored a goal with 26:38 left in the second half to snap the Sun Devils' scoring run. They would go over 20 minutes without scoring a goal, as Berkeley Bonneau and the defense played brilliantly. During that time, Arizona State scored seven unanswered goals to increase the lead to double-digits and trigger a running clock.
NOTABLES
- Arizona State moves to 2-2 on the road and snaps USC's eight-game home winning streak.
- USC's largest margin of defeat to a Pac-12 opponent.
- The Sun Devils scored 20 goals for the fourth time this season and the six time in the 14 games of the Coach McCormack era.
- The 20 goals matched the most that USC had allowed in a game ever, a total reached by No. 2-ranked Boston College in the 2017 NCAA Quarterfinals.
- In the previous five matchups since the program started in Tempe back in 2018, USC had outscored ASU 83-25.
- This year, the Sun Devils forced a running clock midway through the second half in the two sides first meeting of 2021, only the second time that an opponent had accomplished that feat against the Trojans at McAlister Field.
- The only other team to achieve a double-digit lead in a road matchup with USC was Northwestern way back in the Trojans' first game as a program in 2013.
- USC has had running clock on it only two other times
- Apr. 8, 2018 – at Oregon
- Feb. 23, 2021 – at Stony Brook
- Arizona State set the tone from the start, scoring 24 seconds into the game.
- ASU featured a quick strike offense, scoring less than a minute a part four different times.
- The Maroon & Gold established their first halftime lead over a ranked foe.
- Kerri Clayton finished with 11 points, scoring six goals and dishing out five assists.
- She scores 11+ points for the second-time in her career, previously matching the Pac-12 single-game record for points in a game against Oregon in 2019.
- The five assists are a career high.
- It was her fourth-career 6+ goal performance.
- Surpassed 50 career assists as a Sun Devil in 49 games
- Emily Glagolev orchestrated the offense with a fantastic seven-point performance (four goals & three assists).
- She scores four goals for the second consecutive game and third time in her career.
- It was her 13th career 3+ assist performance.
- She has reached at least seven points four times in her career.
- The Pac-12 leader in goals Carley Adams added five to her total in another impactful outing.
- For the fourth time this season and fifth time in her career, Adams scored five goals, as she continued her incredible tear.
- She is now up to 25 goals this season and has 43 goals over her last 18 games, previously scoring 13 goals in 32 career games during her first two seasons.
- Berkeley Bonneau enjoyed another double-digit save performance, making 11 stops.
- She now has 29 career double-digit save efforts on her resume and 20 career wins.
- It was a total team effort, as eight players recorded a point, seven earned a draw control, and ten collected a ground ball.
QUOTABLES
"Our draw unit played tough and competed all game," Coach McCormack observed. "Defensively we did a solid job of getting ground balls in our 12 meter and limiting second chance opportunities. We got our pressure points locked in and played as a unit which was great to see."
"On the offensive side we played our game, kept it simple and the results took care of themselves," Coach McCormack added. "Overall it was great to play Sun Devil Lacrosse for a full 60 minutes."
"I don't think anyone within our program is shocked that we just played that way for a full 60 because we do it every day at practice," Kerri Clayton mentioned. "But it shows that we're ready to compete against anyone we face and I'm excited for the rest of the season."
"When we play for a full 60, nothing can stop up," Berkeley Bonneau reflected. "I don't say that to be cliche. In games that don't end in our favor we were not playing Sun Devil Lacrosse for 60. Today we showed what we look like when we play our game for the entire game."
UP NEXT
ASU returns to Sun Devil Lacrosse Stadium for a non-conference matchup with UC Davis. The Sun Devils take on the Aggies at 1 pm MST, with the game being broadcasted via live stream here and live stats provided at this link. Stay tuned for more details on the weekend.
"We have a quick turn around and are looking forward to getting better tomorrow," Coach McCormack concluded.
*There has been an update in the Sun Devil Athletics fan attendance policy. For some of our smaller Olympic sport venues, student-athlete family and guest tickets remain the priority and we will accommodate additional fans the day of if we are not already at capacity.
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