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No. 2 ASU softball travels to compete against No. 14 Stanford

(04/05/13 12:00am)

The ASU softball team expects freshman first baseman Nikki Girard to play against Stanford despite breaking her left pinkie. Girard broke the finger Sunday when Oregon State freshman first baseman Natalie Hampton stepped on her hand during a pickoff attempt. Girard, playing designated player, stayed in the game and went 0-for-2 after she was picked off. “I told her she didn’t need it; she could cut it off,” ASU coach Clint Myers said. “She’ll just have to make the pitchfork this way. She’s a kid that wants to play. She’s not going to let an injury keep her out of the lineup.” Myers said Girard took fewer reps than normal in practice. She could wind up playing designated player again to eliminate the fielding aspect of the game and still keep her in the batting order. “She’s not smart yet to understand that a reduction of reps isn’t taking yourself out of the lineup. It’s just a reduction of reps so your body can heal a little faster,” Myers said. Girard is not letting the small injury prevent her from playing No. 14 Stanford this weekend. No. 2 ASU (34-3, 5-1 Pac-12) faces Stanford in an odd two-day, three-game series on Saturday and Sunday. Junior pitchers Dallas Escobedo and Mackenzie Popescue will each start a game on Saturday. Those results will determine who starts the series finale. Stanford (26-10, 4-5 Pac-12) and ASU are each coming off series wins against No. 15 UCLA and No. 24 Oregon State. “Stanford’s a good team,” Myers said. “They’re a Pac-12 team that’s been in the postseason every year. They’re well-coached, well-disciplined; they play it the right way, so it’s going to be a great test. It will be a good series.” Stanford’s biggest strength comes on the mound. Cardinal senior pitcher Teagan Gerhart holds a 14-5 record with a 1.43 ERA. She won 32 games for Stanford last season. “They got a good staff,” Myers said. “They got the old-timer back (Gerhart) that has beaten I think everybody in the conference. They got some arms. It’s coming down to execution, performance and everything else.” Stanford doesn’t quite possess the offensive firepower that ASU does. As a team, Stanford is hitting .287 with 18 home runs on the season. Every starter in ASU’s lineup is hitting above .300. The Sun Devils also lead the entire Division I (out of 290 teams) in scoring with 7.76 runs per game. ASU also ranks second in batting average (.356) and slugging percentage (.607). The first two games of the series will air on the Pac-12 network Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. respectively. Reach the reporter at Justin.Janssen@asu.edu

https://www.statepress.com/article/2013/04/no-2-asu-softball-travels-to-compete-against-no-14-stanford

No. 2 ASU softball hosts revamped No. 23 Oregon State

(03/29/13 12:22am)

In its Pac-12 home opener, the No. 2 ASU softball team will take on a much-improved No. 23 Oregon State team. Oregon State went 36-23 last year (9-14 Pac-12) and appeared in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007. Considering it won 10 conference games in the prior three seasons combined, that’s a big improvement. In her first season at the helm, Beavers coach Laura Berg is one of the catalysts for the turnaround. She was an assistant for Oregon State in 2012 before being named head coach in August. On the field, freshman first baseman Natalie Hampton leads Oregon State (23-6) with her .433 batting average and 10 home runs. The Beavers haven’t played a conference game yet, and last year ASU (31-3, 2-1 Pac-12) split two games with Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore. “They’re in the Pac-12,” coach Clint Myers said. “Everybody in the Pac-12 is good. We got to come out with our A-game and play consistent softball." In last weekend’s series against UCLA, ASU took two out of three games. But it struggled with runners in scoring position, leaving 32 runners on base. “We’re spending a little time on situational hitting,” Myers said. “We’re doing a good job of getting people on. We’re just not doing a good job getting them in.” One reason for some of the perceived struggles was that a ton of the hits ASU had were singles. It’s very difficult to score if a team needs four hits in an inning to produce a run. On the season, 65 percent of ASU’s hits were singles, and 71 percent of the 28 hits in the UCLA series were singles. The struggles are a little surprising, considering ASU is one of the country’s top hitting teams in batting average (.361, third) and slugging percentage (.603, second). A bright spot in the series was the play of freshman first baseman Nikki Girard. Girard went 4-for-9 with two home runs and drove in six runs. “Nikki’s a very good player,” Myers said. “She’s starting to understand the game, and we’re hoping that her performance level stays right at that level.” The series runs Thursday through Saturday, and the teams are not playing on the usual Sunday slot due to the Easter holiday. Friday’s 7 p.m. game is sold out, according to ASU Athletics. ASU will appear on the Pac-12 Network for the first time on Saturday at 2 p.m. “As a team it’s our first TV game,” junior center fielder Alix Johnson said. “Especially for the youngsters on the team, they’ve never experienced that, cameras everywhere, microphones, interviews. That should be exciting for them, and you have to get pumped when it’s on TV. All your family, friends that are out of town are watching.” Reach the reporter at Justin.Janssen@asu.edu

https://www.statepress.com/article/2013/03/no-2-asu-softball-hosts-revamped-no-23-oregon-state

ASU softball wins nail-biter 5-4 over UCLA, takes series

(03/24/13 7:54pm)

ASU junior pitcher Mackenzie Popescue escaped a seventh inning jam for a six-out save as ASU softball team (31-3, 2-1 Pac-12) defeated UCLA (24-6, 1-2 Pac-12) in a 5-4 thriller. ASU took the series from UCLA on the road to open Pac-12 play behind 11 hits and five walks. The Sun Devils jumped ahead 5-0 early. It seemed they would cruise to an easy victory as they did the previous day in a 10-3 win over UCLA. ASU hit five singles in the first two innings without scoring a run and left the bases loaded in the second. In the third inning, freshman first baseman Nikki Girard hit a two-run home run to left. The shot was her third of the season, and the second in the series against UCLA. After the third inning, UCLA replaced freshman pitcher Paige McDuffee after just 70 pitches. She hadn’t pitched since March 2 and has battled arm injuries in the past, so she may have operated on a tight pitch count. UCLA junior outfielder/pitcher Jessica Hall moved from first base to the mound to relieve McDuffee. ASU scored three runs off Hall in her first relief inning that day behind four hits. Girard continued her strong play in the series with an RBI single in the inning. In the bottom of the frame, UCLA started to chip into the 5-0 deficit. UCLA freshman designated player Britney Rodriquez launched a two-run home run of her own off ASU junior pitcher Dallas Escobedo. Escobedo retired the Bruins in order in the fifth inning, but in the sixth she was forced out of the game. To lead off the inning, UCLA sophomore shortstop Stephany LaRosa homered to center, the fourth homerun UCLA hit off Escobedo in the series. Escobedo walked the next two hitters in the sixth and in came Popescue out of the bullpen. Popescue recorded three consecutive groundouts to escape the inning, but UCLA picked up another run and trailed 5-4 entering the final inning. In the seventh, Popescue walked two hitters with one out, meaning the tying and winning runs were on base. LaRosa flied out to right and Popescue retired the final hitter on a groundout, ending the threat and giving ASU the series victory. Escobedo (16-3), picked up the decision, but she only struck out one hitter in five-plus innings of work, an anomaly for her, considering she entered the series striking out 11.3 hitters per seven innings. Reach the reporter at Justin.Janssen@asu.edu

https://www.statepress.com/article/2013/03/asu-softball-wins-nail-biter-5-4-over-ucla-takes-series

ASU softball opens Pac-12 play with UCLA

(03/21/13 10:23pm)

The first phase of the season couldn’t have gone any better for the ASU softball team. ASU ascended to No. 2 in the country and went 29-2. “I think playing 31 games and only having two losses is a great accomplishment for this team, considering how young we are,” sophomore catcher Amber Freeman said. “We have played ranked opponents and played a lot of games and gained experience that way, so I think we’re ready (for conference play).” After its successful nonconference slate, ASU plays No. 13 UCLA to begin Pac-12 play. From here on out, ASU will need to get as many wins as it can because of the consistently tougher schedule. In phase two of ASU’s season, the Sun Devils take on the rest of the Pac-12. Eight of the nine conference teams are ranked, with Utah being the exception. “I thought we were in a pretty good position,” ASU coach Clint Myers said. “We accomplished a lot of things of what we wanted to do. I think we’re as ready as we could be considering our youth. It’ll be the start of the season all over, because now it’s Pac-12.” ASU won’t be granted any freebies against UCLA. The Bruins have the best fielding percentage in Division I (.986). In the early going, UCLA’s strength has been swinging for the fences. As a team, UCLA has 43 home runs this year and rank third in home runs per game with 1.58. ASU actually fairs better than the Bruins in that category, ranking second with 1.61 home runs per game and the Sun Devils lead Division I in slugging percentage (.617). UCLA senior outfielder B.B. Bates has 13 home runs already, which ranks second in the country. In addition, UCLA sophomore utility/pitcher Ally Carda has 10. In softball, pitchers rarely hit for themselves. Statistically, Carda is one of UCLA's best hitters. On the mound, she’s the Bruins ace, with a 14-2 record and a 1.79 ERA. “It just depends on the program,” Myers said of pitchers also hitting. “Mack(enzie Popescue) and Dallas (Escobedo) are pretty good hitters. It’s just that we put their focus on the pitching side, instead of having to split it.” The switch from an invitational, when doubleheaders are commonly played, to a series provides clarity on the pitching rotation. The plan is to start Escobedo Friday and Sunday with Popescue pitching Saturday. “It gives Dallas a day of rest, and we can always use her in relief,” Myers said. “Mack knows she’s going to get the ball at least once in all of these games. She’s really been working hard for that.”NoteASU's Saturday game against UCLA originally was scheduled to appear on Pac-12 Network, but the network is instead showing the Pac-12 Gymnastics championship during that time. ASU will appear on the Pac-12 Network 11 times during the conference schedule. Reach the reporter at justin.janssen@asu.edu

https://www.statepress.com/article/2013/03/asu-softball-opens-pac-12-play-with-ucla
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