ASU shows off on both sides of the ball in sweep of UTEP

(Photo via Sammy Nute/WCSN)

TEMPE — It was a tale of two games Wednesday for the Sun Devils, as they faced the UTEP Miners in a doubleheader. The first game was a heavyweight bout with haymakers thrown left and right. The second game was a much more methodical and defensive-minded game, and in the circle, both pitchers showed their talent.

The first game was ASU (7-4) all the way, until a late comeback from the Miners (10-4) almost swept the Devils off their feet, but ASU was able to hold on for a 13-12 victory. After a few weather delays in the second game, the Devils were in the driver’s seat the whole game, winning 3-0.

Days like this where two games against the same team seem to be like night and day in comparison are nothing new to head coach Megan Bartlett.

“(The team) responded well after that first game,” Bartlett said. “Welcome to the sport of softball. If you were to ask me if we were going to play another game with 10-12 runs, I would tell you absolutely not. That’s just how it is.”

Senior right-handed pitcher Mac Osborne started in the circle for ASU and quickly gave up two runs in the first inning. She was able to get herself out of a jam, stranding three Miners as ASU got its first swings down 2-0.

The Sun Devils were right there with the Miners, as graduate shortstop Alesia Denby stayed hot in the bottom of the first with an opposite-field two-run homer to tie the game up. After a walk and hit put runners on first and third, senior third baseman Kayla Lissy drove in run number three of the inning with a sacrifice fly.

After giving up three more runs in the second inning, Osborne’s afternoon was done, and senior right-hander Deborah Jones entered in relief. Jones gave up an RBI single to sophomore second baseman Bri Garcia before ending the inning with ASU down 6-3.

Jones held the Miners to a hitless third inning, and the Sun Devils got right to business. Graduate right fielder Kelsey Hall opened up the floodgates after scoring on an error, and a two-RBI triple from Lissy tied the game. Graduate designated player Jordyn VanHook had a case of deja vu, as she hit an RBI single just as she did against UTEP in 2022, making it an 8-6 game. A walk with the bases loaded to Denby and an RBI sac-fly from Hall ended the third with the Devils up 10-6.

The fourth inning was a defensive battle, but in the bottom of the fifth, sophomore first baseman Shannon Cunningham tacked on two more runs with an RBI single to give the Sun Devils a 12-6 lead. Yet another throwing error from UTEP on a sacrifice fly out from sophomore outfielder Yannixa Acuña added another run, and UTEP faced a 13-6 deficit heading into the top of the sixth.

The Miners put two runs on the board, held ASU scoreless in the sixth and faced a 13-8 deficit going into the top of the seventh. With the bases loaded and one out, junior third baseman Ajia Richard rejuvenated the energy in the Miners’ dugout with a grand slam to bring the deficit to just one run. A game-saving diving grab in right field by Hall ended the game as Devils fans breathed a sigh of relief, and ASU grabbed game one in a 13-12 thriller.

Graduate right-handed pitcher Marissa Schuld got the call in the circle for the second game and started off strong with a scoreless first inning.

“I was just trying to attack the zone, and I knew I had my team behind me to make a play, and I just needed to trust my pitches,” Schuld said.

The second game was more of a defensive battle in the beginning compared to the first game. ASU broke the scoreless tie with an RBI single by freshman catcher Samantha Swan, who was then tagged out at second trying to leg out her single.

Through three innings, both sides had just three hits each, and ASU had the only run. There were multiple short weather delays, which kept either team from finding a groove.

That narrative defined the first five innings, until a two-run double by graduate catcher Mackenzie Macfarlane all but sealed the win for ASU.

Schuld pitched a complete game shutout, giving up just four hits, as the Devils won 3-0 and now head into the Sun Devil Classic on a high after the sweep of UTEP.

“It was a great day,” Bartlett said. “Two wins over any Conference USA (team) is great to put a little wind in our sails heading into this weekend, especially with the talent we’re faced with tomorrow in Texas State.”