(Photo via Joey Plishka/WCSN)
On day three of the Littlewood Classic, Arizona State Softball faced off against both Illinois schools in attendance for a doubleheader. Following a run-rule win over Portland State the night before, ASU hoped to add two more wins on Saturday.
Although their slate against Illinois State (2-7) and DePaul (4-4) started later than the schedule intended, the Sun Devils (7-2) were able to wrap both games up early due to their suffocating defense and a combination of skill and power on offense.
After going down 3-0 in the second inning against Illinois State, the Sun Devils scored 11 straight runs to end the game in just five innings. On the night, ASU outscored both the Redbirds and the Blue Demons 19-3, boasting a batting average of .457 across 10 innings while giving up a total of nine hits.
As alluded to earlier, ASU started slowly against Illinois State, and it appeared the game could end up on upset watch. Sophomore right-hander Kenzie Brown got the start for ASU coming off of her relief performance against BYU on Friday, in which she gave up zero hits in four innings. However, it was a different story for Brown against the Redbirds.
She faced pressure in the first inning when Illinois State got runners on first and second base with only one out, but she managed to save the inning with two strikeouts. She faced a similar situation in the second inning when the Redbirds got runners on first and second once again, this time with no outs. Brown couldn’t limit the damage this time, giving up two runs off a single and a fielder’s choice.
In the top of the third, Illinois State sophomore shortstop Delainey Bryant hit a leadoff home run into center field to end Brown’s night and give the Redbirds a 3-0 lead. Meanwhile, ASU hadn’t generated much pressure on the offensive end, only recording one hit through two innings.
Similar to the BYU game, the Sun Devils went down early and couldn’t find their rhythm on offense. However, Saturday’s game ended much differently than Thursday’s, as both the offense and defense stepped up immensely.
Junior right-handed pitcher Deborah Jones, a transfer from Ball State, took control of the mound after Bryant’s home run and locked the Redbirds down from there on out. In the next three innings, Jones gave up three hits and zero runs, striking out five batters in the process. Head coach Megan Bartlett couldn’t contain her excitement when talking about Jones after the game.
“She is just a master at changing speeds,” Bartlett said. “She’s got this brilliant composure about her. She has thrown a ton of innings in her career. … She is a very talented pitcher, and she is an even better human. She’s a glue kid and a huge part of our clubhouse and what this program will be going forward, so I’m just happy for her.”
And while Jones and the defense were shutting down the Redbirds, the Sun Devils’ offense exploded. Graduate outfielder Yannira Acuña was the first to get an RBI, hitting a single into right field that allowed her younger sister, freshman outfielder Yannixa Acuña, to score as a pinch runner. Two batters later, the Acuñas were followed up by back-to-back home runs from senior outfielder Jazmine Hill and senior infielder Jazmyn Rollin to give ASU a sudden 5-3 lead.
The Sun Devils outdid themselves in the next inning, scoring six more runs. Illinois State switched pitchers and got two quick outs, but the Sun Devils proceeded to hit four straight singles to score two more runs. A three-run home run by graduate outfielder Makenna Harper gave ASU a 10-3 lead. Illinois State switched pitchers once again, but it didn’t matter who was at the mound; the Sun Devils couldn’t be stopped. Following Harper’s homer and the subsequent pitching change, senior infielder Jordyn VanHook knocked one over the wall to give ASU an eight-run lead and the eventual 11-3 victory.
Through the first two innings, the Sun Devils had a batting average of .143. In the closing third and fourth, they had a batting average of .600 en route to their 11 unanswered runs. Bartlett, while not happy about the early deficit, was pleased with how her team kept its composure.
“We just need to stop (getting behind),” Bartlett said. “We somehow are getting better at just whittling our way back once we get down, so the good news is, (there are) a lot of veterans on the team. They just don’t panic much about it. … The messaging to the kids right now is they are always in control of their attitude, their effort, their energy, their approach, and they’re the only person that can fix that, and they’re completely responsible for it.”
The Sun Devils were more than able to keep the momentum going into their second game of the day against DePaul. Unlike game one, the Sun Devils never trailed and hardly faced any pressure. Similar to the first game, the offense was astonishing.
After going scoreless in the first, the Sun Devils piled on the runs in the second, scoring six without hitting a home run. Following a double by graduate infielder Alexa Milius, six of the next seven at-bats saw a runner cross home plate for ASU. They hit a total of four singles and two doubles in the inning while also recording two walks and a stolen base, ending the frame with a 6-0 lead.
Fast forward to the fourth inning, the Sun Devils returned to their hard-hitting ways to put themselves in position for another five-inning victory. VanHook hit a homer deep into right field to score Hill and herself, giving ASU an 8-0 lead and a .600 batting average on the night. Bartlett talked about how dynamic her team can be, regardless of whether the ball is flying over the fence.
“We spent a ton of time this fall on adjustability, hitability, not just can we get our ace swing off,” Bartlett said. “That was exciting to see. That DePaul game, they probably threw about 45% change-ups which is a super high percentage. I thought the girls handled it wonderfully. Just based on what the end of the postseason looked like last year, to see that out of this group, tonight was incredibly encouraging.”
To secure the run-rule win, the defense has to do its job as well, and the Sun Devils made sure of that. Junior righty Mac Osborne from Virginia Tech started on the mound to close out the day. She returned to the circle after a rough performance against BYU in which she gave up five hits and six runs and hit two batters in two innings.
However, Saturday night, she was a completely different player. In five innings, she gave up just one hit and recorded six strikeouts. DePaul didn’t get two runners on base once while Osborne was pitching. Bartlett knew that Osborne had the talent, but she is more focused on empowering self-confidence in her pitcher.
“She got buried behind some really great pitchers at Virginia Tech the last couple of years, so we really didn’t need to do much with Mac’s skillset when she got here,” Bartlett said. “We really just have to find a way to build that kid’s confidence because once we do, and she feels like she’s capable of going out and competing against any lineup in the country, she is going to win some really big ball games for us.”
The rest of the defense stepped up as well for ASU. This was evidenced by the game’s final play. Rollin had to lunge to grab a ground ball hit by DePaul junior infielder Payton Viles before tossing it to junior infielder Savannah Price for the first out of a double play that finished with VanHook recording the out with an assist from Price. It was the Sun Devils’ second double play of the game and fourth of the day.
Other than the early deficit against the Redbirds, the Sun Devils played exquisitely on both sides of the ball. Just about everyone who played had a positive impact on either game. And while Bartlett is invested in developing her players’ skills, she thinks the type of women they are will matter more in shaping this program.
“Those kids should be more worried about respecting and empowering the women next to them,” Bartlett said. “If that’s the kind of clubhouse we have, then we’re going to win a ton of softball games.”
