(Photo: Troy Tauscher/WCSN)
For the first time in 2019, the No. 15 Arizona State Sun Devils took down a ranked opponent, dispatching No. 9 Texas 9-6 on Sunday in the closing game of the Sun Devil Classic.
It was an emotion-stuffed affair from cover to cover, as momentum pitched and yawed between the teams early on. Arizona State was the first to take control as the emerged from the first inning with a one-run advantage thanks to a leadoff blast over the centerfield wall by junior left fielder Kindra Hackbarth, a name that would come up again later.
Texas pitcher Miranda Elish would regain her composure quickly, as she struck down the next three Sun Devil batters.
In the second, Texas would capitalize on spotty pitching from Cielo Meza and tack on four runs whilst only putting the ball in play twice. After three walks in the inning, Meza would be pulled from the game, making way for junior pitcher, Samantha Meija. The Long Horn rally would finally be ended by a phenomenal across-the-body diving grab by Kindra Hackbarth at the warning track that left two Texas baserunners stranded.
Reflecting on the play, Hackbarth remarked that “we feed off of plays like that,” while also adding “a big play like that, we can take it and roll with it, especially behind the plate”. This sentiment would come to fruition almost immediately as, with two runners aboard, Hackbarth launched her second dinger of the day over the left field scoreboard and leveled the game at four.
After flaming out in the third and getting through the top of the fourth inning unscathed, the Devils would go back to work behind the plate. With two outs, ASU loaded the bases after three walks from Elish.
Elish, who came into the contest sporting a 0.73 ERA that could be mistaken by the common eye as a speck of dirt on the stat sheet, was pulled at this point, making way for freshman Sheaylyn O’Leary.
The first batter O’Leary would face: senior centerfielder, Morgan Howe.
Howe would go onto launch a double to the track in left, which grazed the glove of Texas left fielder Shannon Rhodes on the way down. That knocked in sophomore second basemen Bella Loomis from third and Kindra Hackbarth from second. The tragedy for Texas was compounded by an arid throw from the cutoff that got by Longhorn catcher Mary Iakopo and scored senior Skyler McCarty and brought Howe into third.
O’Leary would finally end the inning with a strikeout of junior Maddi Hackbarth, but the damage had been done. By the time the dust had settled, ASU led 9-4.
In the sixth, Meija, after going 3.2 innings without allowing an earned run, finally cracked and Texas wormed through to get their first score since the second inning.
“I feel like we all know that we are capable of doing it,” Mejia said. ” If I can’t do it, Cielo will do it, or if Cielo can’t do it, Abby can do it. We are really close and its never like we are working against each other” Samantha added.
Abby Anderson picked up the torch and instantly induced a fly out to deep center-right and got out of the jam.
ASU would then go 1,2,3 through the bottom of the sixth and head into the seventh hanging onto a four-run lead. Anderson was left on to close.
“Cielo and Sam pitched their butts off to get us to where we were at and I was not going to let that go,” Anderson said. “It’s personal. Getting that win is personal.” However, Texas would try to spoil the part as they jumped out on the front foot with two hits to start the seventh.
Andrson held on, getting the next three Texas batters to ground or fly out and although the Longhorns would score one more run on a sacrifice fly, ASU would take the victory.
“It feels amazing just to know that we are capable of doing it,” Mejia said, relishing the moment. “It took a team win. It took all of us. And you know, it’s something that we needed to know that we are capable of doing this”
The Sun Devils will be back in action at home vs James Madison on Thursday to start the ASU Invitational.
