One game was close; in the other, ASU softball applied the mercy rule. Friday and Saturday displayed a contrast of games.
On Saturday, the Sun Devils faced off East Carolina, defeating the Pirates 9-1 and applying the mercy rule. This was the third time in tournament that ASU has beaten a team with a mercy rule.
Sophomore pitcher Dale Ryndak stared off in the circle for the Devils and handled defensive business for ASU. This was Ryndak's first start of the season. Ryndak faced 12 batters, giving up one hit and had a total of three strikeouts.
"It felt good to get back out there," Ryndak said. "We're definitely more of a staff this year. I think we all work well together because we're all a little different in the circle."
Senior catcher Katee Aguirre was the offensive catalyst, hitting a line drive single to left field and putting the Sun Devils on the board at the bottom of the first inning. Aguirre went 1-2.
Junior shortstop Chelsea Gonzales also put up some numbers, hitting a double and driving in two runs, which bumped the score up 4-0. Gonzales went 1-3 with a pair of RBIs.
"When I saw the first good pitch, I just took a hack at it," says Gonzales "It just felt great to bring in some runs for my team."
Junior pitcher Kesley Kessler closed out the game, taking the circle in the fourth inning. She started off a little rattled, but later delivered and closed out the game for the Devils, keeping the Pirates to only one run. Kessler faced a total of eight batters and only gave up one hit.
It was her second consecutive day pitching. On Friday, she started against No. 8 Tennessee.
The Sun Devils grabbed a 3-0 lead in the first inning, and Kessler followed it with three scoreless innings. In the fourth, she gave up a three-run home run, allowing the Volunteers to tie the game.
The score remained tied at three until extra innings. In the eighth, the Sun Devils overcame the Volunteers to win 5-4.
The game winning run was not because of a deep ball or a liner to the gap. Instead, it came off a pass ball from Tennessee pitcher Erin Gabriel. She made the call to intentionally walk senior designated hitter Katee Aguirre, but the ball flew to the left and past the catcher.
Senior center fielder Jennifer Soria took the opportunity to steal home and win the ball game walk-off style.
ASU will continue this tournament with a double header on Sunday. They face Portland State at 1:30 p.m. and will then compete against San Diego at 3:45 p.m. at Farrington Stadium.
Reach the reporter at lmbrunet@asu.edu or follow @Leah_brunette on Twitter.
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