(Photo via Nicole Mullen/WCSN)
With the series tied heading into Sunday’s game, ASU Softball knew it had what it would take to secure its first Pac-12 Conference series win over No. 9-ranked Washington.
Despite falling behind the Huskies (26-8, 7-5), head coach Megan Bartlett and her Sun Devils (20-11, 4-5) fought back and earned their first series win in upset style by trumping the Huskies 5-2.
“We have had a rough patch, and [the team] has continued to battle,” Bartlett said. “There were, I think, many weeks where we just had work and resilience and trusting us that we thought they were capable, and now they are starting to come along. We are starting to put all the facets of the game together, but this was a big win, and I am super excited for the girls.”
Momentum was present for the Sun Devils on the defensive side but absent on the offensive end to start the game. Senior infielder Jazmyn Rollin reached safely after an infield single with two outs in the first inning but was stranded on base.
ASU still had its struggles with leaving runners on in the bottom of the third frame. Despite a leadoff single from junior infielder Kayla Lissy and a walk by graduate infielder Alexa Milius, both were left stranded when Rollin struck out to end the inning.
However, the Sun Devils found a way to turn the tide while trailing by two in the bottom of the fourth. With the bases loaded and two out on the board, junior infielder Savannah Price hit a grand slam over the left field wall to put the Sun Devils on board and take the lead 4-2. It was Price’s first home run of the season, and it gave ASU the momentum it needed to pull out the win.
The grand slam by Price was potentially even more vital for her confidence. In the third inning, two fielder’s choices and a pair of stolen bases allowed the Huskies to put two runners in scoring position. On a strike to freshman catcher Sydney Stewart, freshman outfielder Brooklyn Carter made a move toward home. After receiving the throw from the catcher, Price, due to a rare hesitation, wasn’t able to force Carter into a rundown, and the Huskies plated the first run of the game.
“I had to do it for my pitcher after I had allowed one run to score earlier,” Price said. “This was a big moment for us. It was coach (Bartlett’s) first series win, so we are really excited for her. We’re going to celebrate her, and it’s just us giving back to her, and all the hard work put into this past week just really paid off.”
Despite the team’s struggles with stranded runners, the offensive rally in the fourth was enough to secure the win. A solo shot by Rollin in the fifth brought enough momentum to stifle any late rallies from the Huskies.
In the circle, ASU continued to strand players on the base paths, leaving 10 more runners on base to bring the weekend’s total to 29 for the Huskies. With two runners on, graduate right-handed pitcher Marissa Schuld entered the game in the sixth to get her team out of a jam. After allowing a single to load up the bases, Schuld did just that. She held Washington scoreless in the final two innings to finish out the game for ASU.
“I just told myself to play loose, and I knew we had it pretty well and played with the lead,” Schuld said. “I just attacked the zone and let my pitches work. I told myself that I have been in tough situations before last year and during supers so don’t tense up or make the moment too big.”
This win was monumental to Bartlett with it being her first series win in the Pac-12. When greeted by her team postgame, she was met with a bucket of ice dumped on her in celebration of the landmark victory.
“This is a group, I think, is going to be one of the ones I remember forever,” Bartlett said. “They are pretty special. They have stuck together and stuck with us through some really hard moments, and I don’t think every team in college softball or college athletics could say they would stick with their coaches that long, so I am grateful for them and really proud of them.”
Thanks to the crucial upset, the Sun Devils will carry back-to-back wins with them for the first time in conference play this season when they go back on the road for their next series against No. 20 Utah.
“You need to have a short memory and some decent barrel control and be able to stay calm in the moment, and hopefully, this was a turning point,” Bartlett said. “They are not looking back. That group of 20 believes that they are capable of winning at a high level and over that hurdle.”
