(Photo: Marlee Smith/WCSN)
No. 2 UCLA cruised past No. 11 Arizona State in both games of Saturday’s doubleheader after an extra innings battle Friday afternoon.
It is important to note that the first game of the doubleheader was a Pac-12 conference game, but the second game will be counted as a non-conference matchup that will affect both teams’ overall record but not their conference record.
Outstanding pitching continued from Friday’s game as the Bruins held the Sun Devils to only one run over the two games. The stellar pitching was first displayed in game one as redshirt sophomore Megan Faraimo hung 10 strikeouts on the Sun Devils over seven innings pitched.
Things looked bright for Arizona State early in the game after fifth-year catcher Maddi Hackbarth smacked a double to center, scoring her sister and fifth-year outfielder Kindra Hackbarth. The double put the Sun Devils in the driver’s seat, but it would not last long as Arizona State’s high-powered offense only produced two more hits throughout the rest of the game.
Faraimo dazzled her way to her ninth win of the year in comfortable fashion as the Bruin offense crushed four home runs and tallied eight hits on the day. UCLA got things rolling when redshirt freshman Maya Brady tied the game at one a piece with a solo home run in the second inning.
The Bruins stayed hot as redshirt senior infielder Bubba Nickles, redshirt junior infielder Kinsley Washington, and redshirt junior catcher Delanie Wisz each went yard.
The Sun Devils tried to adjust as they made multiple pitching changes, but it was not enough to overcome the number two team in the country. Sixth-year senior pitcher Cielo Meza started the game for Arizona State but was relieved by freshman pitcher Allison Royalty during the third inning. Royalty went on to pitch three innings before Meza returned to finish the game.
Both Sun Devil pitchers threw three innings and gave up a combined eight hits that led to a 6-1 Bruin victory in the first game.
Sophomore pitcher Lindsay Lopez got the start in game two despite starting in the Sun Devils’ Pac-12 opener one day earlier.
The Sun Devils small pitching staff has required each of their three pitchers to be available to start, relieve and get out of all kinds of different jams. Lopez was up to the challenge in game two as she silenced the ferocious Bruin offense through four innings.
The downside, however, was UCLA dominated in the circle. A dual performance from redshirt junior pitcher Holly Azevedo and redshirt senior pitcher Rachel Garcia put the normally red-hot Arizona State offense on ice.
The preseason All-American and Olympian Garcia tossed 5.2 innings in game two and racked up seven strikeouts. The duo of Garcia and Azevedo surrendered only three hits and one run as Arizona State batters looked anything but normal. The Hackbarth sisters combined for five strikeouts in game two, something that does not happen often from Kindra, the preseason All-American, and Maddi, the Pac-12 RBI leader.
UCLA took the lead in the fifth inning after redshirt junior Aaliyah Jordan singled to left. The Bruins broke the game open in the sixth inning as they scored three additional runs. Ultimately, the Sun Devils never were able to recover and were shut out 4-0 in game two.
Arizona State has now competed against the nation’s top two squads in No. 1 Oklahoma and UCLA. The Sun Devils have not come up with a win, but they have proven their ability to compete with the best as the Sun Devils have found themselves in positions to win multiple times against those juggernauts.
Arizona State will have an opportunity to quickly bounce back from the two losses as it battles UCLA for the fourth time this weekend on Sunday afternoon with first pitch slated for 2 p.m. MST.
