(Photo via Sam Polgreen/WCSN)
TEMPE – In an abnormal occurrence, ASU softball started its week on Tuesday rather than Friday with a midweek matchup against Grand Canyon. Despite the midweek game, Farrington Stadium was packed to the brim with ASU and GCU fans alike. The energy was vital for the Devils looking to end the Lopes’ four-game win streak.
Ultimately, thanks to a flurry of early runs, the Devils (16-9) downed the Lopes 8-2 (20-6) and secured another win against a talented team.
“I mean, GCU is a very, very good ball club,” head coach Megan Bartlett said. “They’ve got spinners that work up. They’ve got kids that can go, 68 (miles per hour), 69, pop 70 and go down and about everything in the middle of that. So it is a lot to prepare for, especially for a Tuesday night.”
However, the Devils seemed unfazed by the rare Tuesday night game, and they put on a show for their home crowd by scoring all of their runs within the first two innings of the matchup.
Sophomore outfielder Tanya Windle started the momentum for the ASU when she nailed a ball to left center and drove in graduate outfielder Kelsey Hall, graduate utility Audrey LeClair and sophomore outfielder Yannixa Acuña to rack up three runs in the first inning. Graduate infielder Alesia Denby used the energy from Windle in the batter’s box to earn a single, which allowed Windle to score and give ASU a 4-0 lead over the Lopes.
The Devils had a slow start offensively in the second inning. However, Acuña instantly changed the team’s trajectory when she doubled to left center to bring in senior infielder Kayla Lissy and Hall. Windle, yet again, was a powerhouse in the box and the star of the show, hitting a grounder past second base for another RBI.
After the Sun Devils’ blistering start, the Lopes had been battered enough. Leading off the fourth inning, graduate infielder Ramsay Lopez hit a homer that ricocheted off the scoreboard, urging it to add a run for GCU. The Lopes kept their hitting streak going through the fifth inning, and they managed to score an additional run, but they did not score any more for the rest of the game.
Like the Lopes, the Sun Devils also had a scoring drought. The Devils did not touch home in any of the remaining innings but this minor hiccup did not come back to bite the team. Because of their lengthy lead, the Devils’ stalwart defensive strategy sufficiently caused the Lopes to fail in closing the gap.
ASU stood behind senior right-handed pitcher Deborah Jones in the circle. Jones was on a roll right from the start, and she was a formidable opponent to the Lopes. Like graduate righty Marissa Schuld in the Devils’ last game against Washington, Jones showed great poise in the circle and pitched the entire game. She also managed to achieve three strikeouts and only walked one batter.
“I’m just so proud of (Jones),” Bartlett said. “My heart is certainly happy for Deborah because she’s just pitching how she’s capable and how she had to take a lot of responsibility, but interestingly enough, that’s what she’s used to.”
The Devils were exceptionally well-rounded during this game. They excelled defensively, but their success was due to their immediate offense at the beginning of the game. The Devils got the bats going right from the start, and even though they only had ten hits, they proved to make the most of their offensive rotations.
“If I could bottle (the energy), I would,” Bartlett said. “It’s certainly a fun clubhouse to be in right now, but I’m very proud of the girls. They struggled through some early moments in the season, and they continue to believe, work, and grind, and these are just good team wins.”
