TEMPE, Ariz – Time was ticking. With less than a minute to go in the game, a wild scrum formed in front of Iowa State’s goal.

A shot from ASU freshman forward Mechal Green got past the goalkeeper but was stopped by an Iowa State defender within two feet of the goal line. The rebound found the right foot of ASU graduate midfielder Peyton Marcisz, who shot a rocket toward the goal.

Her shot went off the crossbar and the final seconds expired as an Iowa State free kick was sent out of bounds.

Despite the theatrics in the final few minutes, Arizona State (7-3-3, 2-2-1 Big 12) tied Iowa State (4-5-4, 0-3-2 Big 12) by a score of 1-1 Thursday at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe. ASU’s offense was dynamic, yet the Sun Devils met a tandem duo of unstoppable defenders: Iowa State redshirt freshman goalkeeper Eme McClenahan, and the crossbar.

“We had a lot of shots on goal, so I’ll give it to their keeper,” Marcisz said. “Amazing game.”

With diving punchouts, leaping stops and incredible grabs, McClenahan was elite in front of the net. She finished with 10 saves on the night, tying her career high at Iowa State.

“Their goalkeeper was phenomenal,” ASU head coach Graham Winkworth said. “She was wonderful, so credit to her.”

But McClenahan wasn’t the only tough opponent the Sun Devils had to face when shooting–ASU had three shots denied by the crossbar.

Besides Marcisz’s attempt in the 90th minute, junior forward Sierra Bergen had a Superman-dive header attempt in the 88th minute denied by the crossbar, as well as a shot from junior Ella Kettles that doinked off the crossbar in the first half.

Winkworth wasn’t too concerned about the crossbar, however.

“The crossbar’s not the reason we lost the game,” Winkworth said although the match ended in a tie.

ASU’s offense had 13 shots on goal and 29 shots overall, plenty of opportunities outside of McClenahan’s game-saving efforts.

“We didn’t finish very well,” Winkworth said. “We had enough easy chances to win, regardless of her performance.”

The Sun Devils’ only goal was from freshman defender Mya Angus after a corner kick in the 18th minute.

“Set pieces are huge for us,” Marcisz said. “We practice them a lot and spend a lot of time with them.”

The set piece helped get the Sun Devils on the board first, but there was still more meat left on the bone.

“I thought the first-half performance was excellent and warranted a three-goal lead,” Winkworth said. “We should have been 3-nil.”

ASU’s offense kept finding opportunity after opportunity but ultimately went silent in the first half after Angus’ goal. It spread to the second half as well, even after a red card took out Iowa State freshman midfielder Aubrey Crawford in the 75th minute.

The red card gave the Sun Devils an advantage with Iowa State having one less player on the pitch. Despite the disadvantage, the Cyclones hunkered down by the goal when it mattered.

“They just dropped back even more, and so there was less space in the areas we were already being unsuccessful in,” Winkworth said. “So it didn’t really help us.”

For the Cyclones’ offense, redshirt freshman midfielder Alaina Villa scored from just outside the 18-yard box in the 32nd minute. Villa’s kick was one of just two shots on goal for Iowa State.

Despite not being able to come away with a win, ASU still takes away a point from Thursday’s match.

“We played a good game of soccer,” Marcisz said. “We were trying different things, and that was helping us take shots, and just because we didn’t finish doesn’t mean we should switch the way we’re playing.”

At the end of the day, however, the Sun Devils were disappointed.

“We still didn’t win,” Marcisz said. “Obviously we’re glad we didn’t lose tonight, but wanted to win.”