Freshman Dale Ryndak throws a pitch against University of Michigan at Farrington Stadium on Friday Feb. 27, 2015. (Jacob Stanek/State Press)
Nobody expected No. 22 ASU softball to start perfect on the road, but 4-1 with two wins in three games against top-15 ranked teams will do just fine.
The Sun Devils (19-8) finished their 2015 tournament schedule on Saturday at the Judi Garman Classic by defeating San Jose State and dropping a matchup with the No. 14 Auburn Tigers.
Game one of two pitted the Sun Devils against the Spartans of San Jose State (16-9). ASU fought through adversity to pull out a 6-4 victory in Fullerton.
Spartan senior pitcher Madison Fish started out the game on a roll, retiring nine consecutive Sun Devil batters before senior right fielder Sierra Rodriguez doubled to center field to lead off the fourth.
Freshman Dale Ryndak (8-2) took the circle for ASU and struggled out of the gate, giving up three runs on the final out of the first inning.
But after a shaky start she got things going, striking out six and only giving up one more run before being relieved by freshman Breanna Macha in the seventh, who notched the save.
Junior catcher Katee Aguirre provided the first offensive punch for the Sun Devils, sending a three-run shot to deep center field to tie the game at three apiece in the fifth frame.
KATEE AGUIRREEEEEEE!!! The three-run pinch hit bomb to dead center and we are all squared at 3-3 here in the fifth!— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) March 7, 2015
Sophomore catcher Sashel Palacios added a three-run home run of her own in the sixth inning, pushing the ASU advantage to 6-3 over San Jose State at that point.
In the bottom of the frame, however, the Spartans responded by making up one more run, but that was all they could muster as Macha entered and shut down a dangerous portion of their lineup.
The win was the fourth in as many games for the Sun Devils on the road this season entering a matchup with Auburn.
Clint Meyers gets the better of his former team
The final game in Fullerton for ASU was against the No. 14 Auburn Tigers out of the SEC. ASU came up short despite a valiant effort, falling 7-4.
This was the first time the Sun Devils have faced former head coach Clint Meyers, who made the move to Auburn two seasons ago after winning two national championships in Tempe in 2008 and 2011.
ASU showed its former coach the firepower that he left behind (including plenty from his own recruits) by going off in the first inning, scoring four runs on five hits.
Auburn answered with one run of its own in the bottom of the frame and did some early damage to Macha (9-5), who started in the circle for the Sun Devils in this one and gave up ten hits in the loss.
The third inning brought more runs across the plate for the Tigers as Macha found herself in a jam. With the bases loaded and no outs in the inning, ASU completed a nifty 1-2-3 double play. Auburn got a two-run single right after, however, to reduce the margin to 4-3 in favor of the Sun Devils.
But the fourth inning was where momentum completely shifted toward the Tigers. Junior second basemen Emily Carosone, Auburn's home run leader, crushed a grand slam in the fourth that put the Tigers on top 7-4.
With the bases loaded in the top of the fifth inning, ASU senior left fielder Elizabeth Caporuscio couldn't cash in and left three of her teammates stranded with a chance to cut the deficit down.
Another shot to come back in the top of the sixth came up empty for the Sun Devils as Auburn made some stellar defensive plays, retiring three straight ASU batters.
After Macha escaped the bottom of the sixth, the seventh inning brought one hit but no more runs for ASU as it came up short of another comeback attempt in a season filled with late game drama.
ASU's next task will be to open up Pac-12 play with a three-game series against the No. 19 Washington Huskies in Seattle. First pitch for game one of the series is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Reach the reporter at rclarke6@asu.edu or follow @RClarkeASU on Twitter.
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