ASU sophomore first baseman Bethany Kemp only saw two pitches at the plate, but she made her at-bat count with the go-ahead single, giving the No. 2 ASU softball team (38-5, 9-3 Pac-12) the 2-1 win and the series victory over Washington (32-12, 10-5 Pac-12) on Sunday.
ASU coach Clint Myers appeared to have selected freshman first baseman Jennifer Soria to pinch-hit for senior outfielder Kayla Ketchum. Soria turned around and in came Kemp to pinch-hit.
“First he called Jen, and then he called me,” Kemp said. “We didn’t know if I was hitting for junior outfielder Bailey (Wigness) or if I was hitting for Kayla so we were kind of confused.”
With the bases-loaded, Kemp delivered the go-ahead RBI on a single to left, which put ASU ahead 2-1.
“I faced (Washington junior pitcher Kaitlin Inglesby) on Friday night and she pitched me changeup either my first or my second pitch so I knew it was coming," Kemp said.
After the single, Ketchum returned to the game and ran for Kemp.
On the mound, junior pitcher Dallas Escobedo closed the door for ASU. Escobedo threw a one-run complete game for the second consecutive nights.
She gave up four hits and two walks to go along with five strikeouts.
Escobedo averages 1.46 strikeouts per inning, yet she didn’t record one until the final out of the fourth inning. Escobedo fanned the final hitter of each of the last four innings.
“It’s definitely great to get some sort of strikeout especially in clutch situations,” Escobedo said.
Offensively, ASU had a strange afternoon at the plate. It recorded nine hits, walked four times, struck out only once and scored only two runs.
A big factor into the low scoring total was ASU hitting into four double plays in six offensive innings.
“When you hit the ball hard it goes to people, and you’re playing somebody that can catch and throw twice, double plays happen.”
The Sun Devils were held scoreless for the first three innings, but four hits in the fourth inning put them ahead for good.
Sophomore third baseman Haley Steele doubled to center to lead off the inning. Sophomore outfielder Elizabeth Caporuscio brought her home with an RBI double into center field. Later in the inning, Kemp drove in the winning run.
Reach the reporter at Justin.Janssen@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @JJanssen11
