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With three wins over its bitter rival, the No. 5 ASU softball team stamped out a statement to the rest of the Pac-12.No matter what the score is, the Sun Devils (31-3, 3-0 Pac-12) are never out of the game.
Coming back from two runs down on Friday, three runs on Saturday and six runs on Sunday brought the crowd to its feet against No. 14 UA.
ASU took control of all three games when UA (19-8, 0-3 Pac-12) pitchers junior Kenzie Fowler and sophomore Shelby Babcock couldn’t seem to find the strike zone.
For ASU senior catcher Nikole Afusia, this required a different mindset when stepping to the plate.
“You have to take control,” Afusia said. “We already know what they are throwing, so you have to look at what you want as a hitter. If they don’t give it to you, then don’t go for it.”
That mindset made the difference for ASU on Sunday as Babcock walked in two runs to give ASU the winning tally in the 7-6 final.
However, it was the hitting of freshman third baseman Haley Steele who started things for ASU early on.
Steele not only scored the first run for ASU after her leadoff double, but she also hit her first career grand slam that barely cleared the left-centerfield fence.
“I was really really hoping that I had enough muscle on that ball,” Steele said. “That was a changeup, and I got a little out in front, but it looks like a home run in the book.”
Steele wasn’t the only freshman with a big home run though. Elizabeth Caporuscio’s walk-off home run with a 2-2 count sealed victory in the 4–2 win Friday night.
It was a bit of a redemption moment for Caporuscio, as she had struck out with the bases loaded in her previous at bat.
“I knew that (Fowler) was going to keep throwing it in the same spot because I wasn’t hitting it all,” Caporuscio said. “(I’m) always more nervous with two strikes, but I’m still up there battling.”
Another key to the team’s success was the recurring image of leadoff hitter senior shortstop Katelyn Boyd trotting down the first base line.
Boyd went 3-6 this weekend with six walks and is the conference leader in on-base percentage at .608.
Boyd also played a key role in the field, as she fielded 10 balls in the team’s 9–6 win Saturday night, including a play in which she threw the runner out at home to keep UA’s lead at four runs.
“There are not a lot of things Boyd can do to surprise me anymore,” ASU coach Clint Myers said. “When you think she can’t, she does. Ten groundballs. If somebody is going to hit it to somebody, hit it to Boyd.”
Saturday’s game presented an emotional challenge to the team. Sophomore Alix Johnson’s slide into home, followed by a massive fist pump by Myers, gave ASU a 6–3 lead in the fifth and the game looked to be over.
However, UA senior second baseman Kristen Arriola responded by blasting a pitch from sophomore Dallas Escobedo (12-2, 2.50 ERA) over the right-field fence to tie the game.
“There’s no quit,” Myers said. “There are dog fights every single night.”
ASU senior pitcher Hillary Bach (14-0, 0.71 ERA) and Escobedo worked together to hold UA to eight earned runs this weekend.
UA was without the help of senior outfielder Karissa Buchanan because of a concussion, sustained in Friday’s game.
Reach the reporter at jjmckelv@asu.edu
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