ASU Softball: Andersen Near-Perfect, Devils Roll Over Lehigh 14-0 to Close Non-Conference

(Photo: Marlee Smith/WCSN)

In their final non-conference game, the No. 17 Arizona State Sun Devils once again put up an overwhelming offensive performance, dominating the Lehigh Mountain Hawks 14-0 at Farrington Stadium on Tuesday.

While the 14 runs provided more than enough cover, pitcher Abby Andersen’s performance stood out. The freshman was perfect through four innings, but her bid for history was broken up by a leadoff single from Jaelynn Chesson in the fifth. That was Andersen’s only hit allowed on the day, and she struck out four while walking none.

“She’s put out some good outings this past weekend and then today,” ASU head coach Trisha Ford said. “Her drop ball was breaking. She was efficient tonight.”

Andersen has been finding her groove since being roughed up by No. 9 Texas on March 1. Since that game, she has thrown 28.2 innings and given up only three earned runs. She has played two consecutive complete games without walking a batter.

Andersen has been put in a big spot since she arrived at ASU, but she is starting to grow into the big shoes of a Pac-12 starting pitcher. Her ERA sits at 1.96 after a second consecutive shutout, and she is growing to trust her ability to hang with collegiate hitters.

“I think it’s been a long journey with Coach Ford on getting me to trust my pitches,” Andersen said. “Being able to trust that what I’m throwing is good enough to compete. Overall, being put in these situations pitching against such big teams has helped me the most.”

Andersen’s growth has been a benchmark for the progress of the pitching staff, all four of whom are new to Arizona State. While the four have had varying degrees of success in non-conference, Ford plans to use them pragmatically, rather than committing to who is and isn’t a starter.

“We’re just going to maybe flip a coin,” Ford joked, going on to say the most important point was “figuring out a way to win ball games.”

Of course, pitching is only part of the equation. With 14 runs scored and zero errors committed, Andersen had the same run and defensive support ASU’s veteran lineup has provided all season. The Devils took advantage of four Lehigh errors and played patiently against starting pitcher Lainey Stephenson, earning their first two runs via bases-loaded walks.

Patience is one of the core tenants of ASU’s plate approach, and the team is improving in that regard. Ford mentioned that after last season, the coaching staff keyed on the team’s walks/hit batters to strikeout ratio as something that could be improved on. Last season, ASU had 196 batters walked or hit and 339 strikeouts. So far in 2019, they sit at 132 walks/hit batters and 135 strikeouts.

“You can see there’s been a huge improvement in that ratio,” Ford said. “That’s something that we hammer hard. When they see results from it though, I think that also helps.”

As has been the case in many of ASU’s games so far, there were many productive and multiple noteworthy performances up and down the lineup. Right fielder Kindra Hackbarth went 3-of-4 with a 2 RBI home run. Second baseman Bella Loomis went 2-of-3 with a pair of doubles.

Center fielder Morgan Howe had the most eye-popping play. In the bottom of the third, Howe had a ball nearly clear the center-field wall. By the time a Lehigh defender was able to recover the ball as it rolled toward the infield, Howe was already looking to home plate. The throw home was off the plate, clearing the lane for ASU’s senior outfielder to pick up an inside-the-park home run.

” I was like rounding second base, and I took a really big turn and was like ‘Ok cool I can triple,'” Howe said. “Then I see [coach Jeff] Harger [wave me forward] and I’m like “Oh shoot. Ok.’ With as little as our park is, to know I’m fast enough to get around those bases, that’s just cool.”

Arizona State has tuned its pitching and shown off its hitting in the non-conference season, waiting for the big challenge to start. The Pac-12 has seven teams ranked or receiving votes, headlined by No. 1 UCLA. One of those vote-getters, the Oregon State Beavers, will come to Farrington on Friday, giving the Devils a big test to start the conference season.