The ASU softball team hadn’t lost a series all year.
So facing the Utah Utes, who only had one conference series win in one and half years, shouldn’t have been a problem.
However, games aren’t played on paper, and ASU lost the series.
The No. 5 Sun Devils (39-7, 10-5 Pac-12) look to counter the surprising series loss with a home showdown against No. 10 Cal (35-9, 9-6 Pac-12).
“This team has to distinguish themselves what kind of legacy and identity they want to have,” coach Clint Myers said. “We’ve had it happen in the past, and we’ve bounced back really well.”
Early in the season, the Cal series was thought to decide the Pac-12 conference championship. Now both teams are on the outside looking in with three weeks remaining in the regular season.
Cal and ASU were picked to finish 1-2 in the conference before the season began. It will be difficult for either to catch Oregon (38-6, 13-2 Pac-12).
ASU dropped from No. 2 in the polls last week to No. 5 this week following the losses at Utah. Cal began the season at No. 3 in the country.
Cal senior pitcher Jolene Henderson could miss the series with an injury she suffered on Sunday against Oregon State.
“Moments after throwing the ball to first base, Henderson grimaced and collapsed to the ground holding her left leg,” Sean Wagner-McGough of The Daily Californian wrote.
Henderson means everything for the Golden Bears.
She appeared in 40 of Cal’s 44 games on the mound, starting 33 of them and has 13 shutouts. Henderson also leads the conference in ERA with 1.21.
“She’s a great pitcher,” Myers said. “Pitchers are huge for any program. I’m hoping that she’s OK. She’s a great competitor, good for the game of softball. I’m guessing that just knowing her that she’s going to be in the circle, unless somebody took her leg off.”
Cal’s other pitchers don’t have nearly the experience or the success of Henderson this season. Henderson is one of the national leaders with 249.2 innings pitched this season.
The rest of the team has thrown 52.1 innings with a 2.94 ERA.
“Whether she pitches or doesn’t pitch, we have to bring our ‘A' game,” Myers said. “That’s the most important thing, coming to play regardless of who’s in the circle.”
Senior second baseman Sam Parlich echoed Myers’s thoughts, especially considering the pitchers ASU lost to last week.
“She’s a big part of the program, but they have other pitchers who are capable of beating us,” Parlich said.
Notes
- All three games in the series will be aired on television. The first game, on Friday, airs on ESPNU at 7 p.m. Saturday’s game is on Pac-12 network at 7 p.m., while the series finale airs at 3 p.m. Sunday on the same station.
- Cal is the only Pac-12 program that Myers has a losing record against with a 10-11 mark.
Reach the reporter at justin.janssen@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @JJannsen11
