(Photo: Susan Wong/WCSN)
The Sun Devils survived a late rally by the Utes to stay perfect in the Kajikawa Classic, finishing the weekend 4-0. The early power-hitting by ASU was the determining factor in this one as the Sun Devils recorded four home runs in the 9-4 win against Utah.
“I thought each day our at-bats got better and better, I thought we did a tremendous job on putting up nine runs tonight,” head coach Trisha Ford said. “They got more and more comfortable as the weekend went on.”
If Friday was the day of the doubles for the Sun Devils, then Saturday was the night of the dingers as outfielder Jazmine Hill started the slugging off with a three-run homer in the 2nd.
“My job is just to make sure that I bring our runners in no matter what I do,” Hill said. “I saw the pitch, and I did what I could with it.”
Hill’s teammates echoed her talk by matching her hitting with impressive power in the 3rd. The inning started with back to back homers from senior infielder Bella Loomis and fifth-year catcher Maddi Hackbarth. ASU led the nation in home runs last year, so this type of power is not a novelty.
Utah called for a pitching change, but the outcome was still the same as senior Denae Chatman hit a three run homer off Utah freshman pitcher Alicia Estrada. By the end of the 3rd inning, the Sun Devils already had four home runs with an 8-0 lead.
During the offensive explosion, the fifth year senior pitcher Cielo Meza held the Utes offense to a standstill. Meza held the Utah offense to only one hit through the first four innings with six strikeouts. While a few hit by pitches and infield errors caused Meza to be in tight situations, the composure from experience Sun Devil allowed her to escape those types of circumstances.
“Cielo threw tremendous tonight,” Ford said. “She was pumping the zone and making them miss, and we just gotta keep working and finish.”
Finishing was the main problem for the Sun Devils this game as the Utes started to make a rally in the 5th. After a few quick hits, loading the bases, Utah Senior Alyssa Barrebra doubled into deep right-centerfield to cut the deficit 9-2.
The Sun Devils, leaning on the ropes, called in sophomore Lindsey Lopez to stop the Ute’s comeback. While Lopez began her relief by allowing two more runs to score, she was able to keep her composure and get out of the tough inning with the lead still intact 9-4. The decision to go with Lopez in that tough spot was a deliberate one by coach Ford.
“[Lopez] is gonna have to develop and get used to this role that she is in, and I was really actually pleased with her,” coach Ford said. “I was the most excited to see some emotions out of her.”
Ford continued how she wants to see this emotion stay with Lopez as she develops into a vital part of this Sun Devils rotation.
After getting out of the mess she was handed in the 5th, Lopez finished out the game strong by only allowing one more hit and three strikeouts in the next two innings. ASU faced heavy resistance during the 5th inning but stopped the momentum to win the game.
“We made sure to control our emotions and not get too anxious or let the game take control of us,” Hill said. “We made sure we took control of the game.”
According to coach Ford, Utah’s late-game rally attempt was a great learning experience for the team to get ready for that type of energy in conference play.
“I told them after the game, hey welcome to Pac-12 play, nobody dies,” coach Ford said.
The ability to fend off pressure this early in the season will prove to be a resourceful tool for this Sun Devils team with aspirations for a deep postseason run. ASU will need more of these types of games to help the group’s growth, and they might not have to wait long, as Cal State Fullerton comes to Tempe for a doubleheader on Tuesday. The Sun Devils look to keep perfection alive when they face Fullerton early next week.
