Then- Junior outfielder Elizabeth Caporuscio jumps for a ball that flies over the fence, giving the Michigan Wolverines a home run during game one of the NCAA Tempe Regional Championships on Sunday, May 18, at Farrington Stadium. ASU lost to Michigan 3-4. (Photo by Becca Smouse)
The outfield will provide important contributions for ASU softball on both sides of the plate this season.
In left field will be senior Elizabeth Caporuscio out of Lake Arrowhead, California, who was named second team All-Pac-12 after her freshman year.
Caporuscio provides offensive firepower with a career slash line of .313/.372/.519, as well as versatility on the defensive side after moving from center to left field in 2013.
Caporuscio hopes to revive the magic of her freshman year in this, her final season as a Sun Devil.
Her home run count has dropped significantly since her freshman campaign, from 16, to five, to two in her junior year, and her slugging percentage has also dropped from .611 in her first season to .468 in 2014. Her batting average is on the rise, however, up to .322 last season after a .293 sophomore campaign.
In center field for the Sun Devils will be another Californian (this time out of Simi Valley,) junior Jennifer Soria, who has improved tremendously in her two years at ASU.
Soria was an all-academic selection in the Pac-12 in 2014; her intelligence is undoubtedly a factor in the stark improvement of her game. After hitting .217 her freshman year with a slugging percentage of .435, she improved those numbers in her sophomore year to .310 and .524, respectively.
It's worth noting that Soria scored six times as many runs in only twice as many at bats between her freshman and sophomore years, doubling her RBI count as well. Soria's speed is a lethal weapon for ASU –– she stole six bases last season.
Speed and power are Soria's two calling cards on offense, and she has proven that she can go off at any moment after hitting her only two career home runs in the same game last season against Idaho State.
With a slugging percentage as high as hers, Soria will definitely be knocking quite a few pitches toward the palm trees at Farrington Stadium. When and if the opposition does the same, her speed will allow her to chase down and get under the ball on defense.
Finally, in right field for ASU will be Chandler native Sierra Rodriguez. Rodriguez transferred to ASU last season from Phoenix College after leading the Bears to a second-place finish in the 2013 NJCAA National Championships.
Phoenix College wasn't her first stop. Her original school was Yavapai College, where Rodriguez won the NJCAA national title in 2011.
Rodriguez is no stranger to the big stage, even if it was at a couple of smaller schools. That will prove valuable for a Sun Devil softball squad striving for a national championship. A fitting end to Rodriguez's journey would be to hoist the NCAA Division I championship trophy come June in Oklahoma City.
But first, the Sun Devils have business to take care of in the regular season, which opens with a doubleheader in the Kajikawa Classic against Creighton and Western Michigan on Thursday, Feb. 5, at Farrington Stadium in Tempe.
Reach the reporter at rclarke6@asu.edu or on Twitter @RClarkeASU.
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