The No. 4 ASU softball team had the week off from conference games but not from competitive softball.
As the Sun Devils (36-5, 8-2) readied themselves to take on No. 16 Stanford, the players knew they were in for a tough week.
“Coach (Clint Myers) had mentioned that it is going to be a really cutthroat week,” senior Annie Lockwood said. “We are really going to get after it in practice, and he might make some changes for the Stanford series.”
A 1-1 series split with Oregon State left the team one loss back from No. 1 California as the conference season begins to wind down.
The Cardinal (32-13, 6-9 Pac-12) are at the other end of the standings. Stanford started the season with high expectations and a top-10 ranked team. Now, it has the second-most conference losses.
ASU senior pitcher Hillary Bach (17-0, 1.21 ERA) commented that the Sun Devils can’t let this disrupt their preparation for the Cardinal.
“Every Pac-12 team is a team to be reckoned with,” Bach said. “If you think that anyone is a losing team, then you are going to lose.”
It shouldn’t be difficult for the Sun Devils to give Stanford a lot of respect. Last year, the Cardinal gave ASU one of only two home conference losses in its national championship season.
“I wouldn’t count them out, even with a record like that,” Lockwood said. “They are going to be coming in here really fired up to play us. We have a whole week to prepare, but that’s one of the mistakes we can’t make, (to) think it’s going to be easy for us.”
The Cardinal present an interesting predicament in that they're not particularly good at anything. They dominate the league in triples with 18 thus far this year, and senior Ashley Hansen broke the school’s single-season record with seven.
Freshman Hanna Winter has been dominant, leading the conference in batting average. She’s hitting at a .453 clip, highest among consistent starters.
Bach has yet to face Winter, but she suggests the team is looking forward to the series.
“We have to take them just as serious as we have taken every opponent in the Pac-12,” Bach said. “We are excited to see what they bring to the table. We are glad to be back at home. That’s for sure.”
Both times the Sun Devils have returned from trips away from home, they have swept a conference foe. Both UA and UCLA saw a motivated team that looked determined to make a statement to the rest of the conference.
“Hopefully we have another phenomenal weekend,” Myers said. “We have got to be able catch it a little better, throw it a little better, hit it a little better and pitch it a little better. There’s some stuff that we are trying to work out, and we need to get it done.”
The series starts at 7 p.m. on Friday. Saturday’s game is also at 7 p.m., setting up the possible rubber match on Sunday at noon.
Reach the reporter at jjmckelv@asu.edu
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