(Photo: Tyler Rittenhouse/WCSN)
The No. 19 Arizona State Sun Devils continued their offensive prowess in the Littlewood Classic, thumping its four opponents by a combined 28-4 this past weekend at Farrington Stadium.
The San Diego Toreros ran into Sun Devil’s power on Sunday. ASU’s offense struck early and never allowed momentum to swing from their side.
Two hit batsmen by San Diego loaded the early in the first inning. A wild pitch forced in one run for ASU, allowing the runners to move up 60 feet respectively. Maddi Hackbarth drove a fastball back up the box, allowing two additional Sun Devils to score.
Jade Gortarez added to the ASU lead with a fielder’s choice in the 2nd inning, scoring Kindra Hackbarth.
ASU’s Nichole Chilson put the game out of reach with a 3-run home run in the third inning, essentially ending any hope for a comeback for the Toreros.
“It was actually a changeup and in practice, we have been working on it a lot, so driving a changeup felt really good,” said Chilson.
The Sun Devils chased San Diego pitcher Hannah Boos after allowing 7 earned runs in 1 2/3 innings of work.
Juarez stymied the USD offense allowing three hits through 7 innings on the mound. Juarez continued her dominance against the Toreros in which she started against San Diego in the 2017 Kajikawa Classic, going 4 innings with 2 earned runs and 5 strikeouts.
Juarez said of tackling San Diego once again, “They could have gotten a bunch of new players that could have made an impact this year. Taking it pitch by pitch was really what made the difference today.”
Ford said of Juarez’s performance, “She came out today and did well. She hit a couple of bumps, but that’s what we are going to deal with early in the season.”
Five scoreless innings ensued from both teams, preventing a mercy rule from being initiated by the Sun Devils. Several ASU position players were pinch hit for, allowing Ford to evaluate some of the players who have not receive as much playing time early in the season.
“These are some kids who may not be seeing as much playing time and are working hard in practice, so anytime we can get them some at-bats and kind of see where they are at.”
The Sun Devils will travel to Palm Springs, California next weekend to take part in the Mary Nutter Tournament.
Ford on their trip to California, “We are excited to go to Mary Nutter, it’s a great tournament, we’re going to play some of the best softball teams in the country, and we are going to have some fun.”
Their first matchup will be against Mississippi State this Thursday night at 2:00 MST.
