Cal Heads To The Desert
TEMPE - The Golden Bears hit the road again to face Arizona State on Friday, April 2 at 7:00 p.m. in Sun Devil Stadium. The weekend will finish on April 4 at 12:00 p.m. in Tuscon when the Bears play the Arizona Wildcats on Murphy Field.
Cal is looking to find a winning rhythm following a 1-0 loss to Oregon on March 26 and 0-0 draw with Oregon State. The Bears earned their fourth shutout of the season against Oregon State and look to continue their defensive precision. Angelina Anderson stacked seven saves against the Beavers.
Against the Beavers, the Bears collected a season high 20 shots but were unable to deliver a goal. Cal must continue its attacking pace but find focus in the penalty box to find scoring opportunities.
Friday's game will be streamed via the Arizona State Live Stream. Sunday's game at Arizona will be broadcasted by the Pac-12 Networks.
SCOUTING THE SUN DEVILS
California looks to put an end to Arizona State's undefeated conference record.
The Sun Devils currently lead the conference in total assists (21), total goals (20) and total points (61). Forward Nicole Douglas leads ASU in scoring with eight goals so far this season. Cal must also keep an eye on playmaker Alexia Delgado, who leads the Sun Devils with five assists.
Arizona State's first and only loss of the season was on March 19 in a nonconference rivalry matchup against Arizona. The Sun Devils fell after being held to just eight shots, well below their season average of 14 shots per game. The Cal backline will need to hold high pressure against the ASU attack in order to keep them away from the net.
The Bears last saw the Sun Devils at Berkeley in November 2019 when the Bears won 2-1. The Sun Devils took the initial lead, but Emma Westin scored the equalizer off an assist from Emily Smith. The Bears outshot ASU 15-7 and the Cal defense held the Sun Devils to just four shots on goal.
Overall, the Bears lead the series, 14-5-4.
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
The Wildcats are looking to improve their 1-4 conference record, having six wins overall this season. Arizona has scored 18 goals in 10 games, while Cal has collected eight goals off of eight games. The Bears hold a slight edge in shooting with a 13-12 average shot advantage. Keeping the edge in the attack will be a key to the Bears' success.
Players to watch from Arizona include forward Jill Aguilera who leads the Wildcats with five goals. Aguilera plays an important role in the Wildcat attack and also leads the team with three assists, tied with forward Jada Talley.
The Bears shut out the Wildcats 3-0 in their last meeting in 2019. Cal's intensity in the attack resulted in the Arizona defense sending a goal into its own net. Despite a 19-7 shooting advantage for Arizona in the 2019 matchup, Cal's defense remained organized to give the Bears a clean sheet.
Overall, Cal leads the series, 16-5-4.
ANDERSON IS A PLUS
The reigning National Freshman of the Year Angelina Anderson currently has 32 saves from eight games this season. Anderson stands sixth overall in saves for the conference, but the five keepers before her each played 10 or more games compared to Anderson's eight.
Anderson earned the Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week honor following the Cal win against Stanford on March 20. Anderson collected the award after racking up a season-high nine saves in a 1-0 win against Stanford the Cardinal.
Anderson was also featured in the TopDrawerSoccer Team of the Week for the week of March 22.
The sophomore received keeper of the week honors three times in 2019 before becoming the first player to win both Freshman of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year in the conference.
WESTIN KEEPS ROLLING
Senior midfielder Emma Westin scored her third goal of the season against Washington.
Westin scored her first goal and the first Golden Bear goal of the season off a penalty kick against Oregon State on Feb. 26. In that same game she earned her first assist off a goal from Anysa Gray. The senior midfielder netted her second goal in the following game, scoring the gamewinner against Oregon on Feb. 28.
Both a playmaker and finisher, Westin also gained a second assist off a give-and-go pass to Keely Roy against Utah that clinched the game for the Bears. Against Stanford, Westin found a connection to Mia Fontana that gave the Bears the game-winning goal.
Westin led the Bears in scoring in 2019 and is on track to hold that title again in for the spring 2021 season. She leads the Bears in goals (3), assists (3) and points (9).
DOUBLE-EDGED DEFENSE
In addition to helping tally two clean sheets so far this season, two Cal defenders have helped the Bears' attack in scoring.
Junior Sydney Collins collected her first collegiate goal against Colorado on March 7. Collins tackled the ball away from a Buffalo forward and made a long dribbling run from midfield before scoring unassisted.
Freshman Maya Evans earned her first career assist on March 14 against Washington after sending a long midfield pass to Emma Westin that led to a goal.
TAKING SHOTS
The Bears have made many trips to the attacking third in their eight games. The Bears have earned many set play opportunities with 43 corner kicks. The Bears must look to convert more shots to goals as they advance in the season to get the winning edge.
Sophomore transfer Keely Roy collected her first Cal goal against Utah. Roy has been a key force in the Bears' attack and leads Cal with 21 shots. Mia Fontana follows close behind with 19 shots and one goal this season.
IN THE ONE HUNDRED
Cal's Angelina Anderson (GK) and Emily Smith (D) were both named to the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. The Hermann Trophy is awarded annually to the top male and female college soccer players. Both Bears were also selected in the National Top 100 on TopDrawerSoccer.
Both Anderson and Smith enter the 2020-21 season with great success to build off of. The duo received All-American honors at the end of the 2019 season - Anderson was selected as a second-team All-American and Smith garnered second-team Scholar All-America honors.
DRAFT DAY
Racing Louiville FC selected senior defender Emily Smith in the second round of the 2021 National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) Draft. Smith, chosen with the 31st overall pick, will report to Louisville following the 2021 season.
UP NEXT
The Bears return home for a California showdown. UCLA first visits Cal on April 9 at 12 p.m. on Witter Rugby Field. Cal then faces USC on April 11 at 1:45 p.m.