Sun Devils’ offense struggles in second loss to GCU

(Photo credit: Madison Sorenson/WCSN)

TEMPE — ASU junior outfielder Yannixa Acuña dug into the batter’s box with one out in the third inning. With senior utility AJ Murphy occupying second base and freshman infielder Tiare Ho-Ching standing on first, Acuña sent the ball right back to the circle.

GCU got the force out at third base, but was unable to turn an inning-ending double-play. After freshman outfielder Ashleigh Mejia walked to load the bases in the next at-bat, it looked as if the lack of speed on defense would cost GCU.

However, graduate outfielder Kelsey Hall was unable to lift the ball, and ASU failed to convert in the majority of its opportunities with runners in scoring position.

“(The team was) extremely frustrated,” head coach Megan Bartlett said. “We certainly were, and I know the girls were too.”

The Arizona State Sun Devils (31-15, 11-7 Big 12 Conference) struggled to get the offense going in a 4-0 loss against the GCU Lopes (34-6, 12-2 Western Atlantic Conference) on Tuesday.

The Sun Devils had a .200 team batting average, their eighth-lowest in a single game all season. The team finished .114 lower than their total season batting average as well. The offense had a challenging night in every department, hitting 1-for-7 with runners on, 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position and 2-for-9 in two-out at-bats. ASU could not seem to gain any momentum, batting 1-for-7 to lead off each inning.

Tuesday was not only the second time these teams have battled this season, but also the second time the Lopes’ pitching shut down ASU.

The Sun Devils had another rough loss out west back in February, falling 3-0 on the road in Phoenix. GCU sophomore right-hander Maggie Place earned the win after 4.2 innings pitched, allowing four hits and no runs. Junior right-hander Taryn Batterton, who threw for just over two innings, assisted that win.

Tuesday night, it was Batterton’s time to shine. Batterton picked up the win, tossing 4.1 innings and, once again, shutting out the Sun Devils. With two runners in scoring position late in the seventh inning, senior right-hander Meghan Golden stepped in and recorded her second save of the season.

“We got to (Batterton) at the end, so I thought we were starting to make some better contact,” Bartlett said. “She was starting to catch the middle of the plate a little bit more, and we started to make good on it. … I think she’s tough. She’s pushing 70. It’s a good drop ball, it’s a good screwball and she could flick a changeup in for a strike. … Sometimes that happens. It’s a round bat and a round ball, and it’s unkind.”

Although the loss ended ASU’s six-game win streak, the Sun Devils are still 7-3 in their last 10 games. With Easter Sunday affecting the weekend schedule, the Sun Devils have a quick turnaround before starting their final homestand against the Baylor Bears.

“All the series this weekend will be Thursday, Friday, Saturday, so we just roll with it,” Bartlett said. “It’s part of the deal, right? You sign up to play elite level athletics, your body, your sanity, there’s a lot of things that are gonna kind of take a beating in the course of the season … 56 games, plus postseason, in a pretty compacted amount of time. We’ll be all right.”