The Utah softball team had yet another successful road trip, winning its fifth straight Pac-12 series by taking two games from No. 22 Arizona State over the weekend.
Utah had to battle for the series, though, after falling in the first game.
In game one, the Utes took an early lead on Arizona State’s home field and led 4-2 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning. That was when the Sun Devils took over. Arizona State scored four runs in the inning off four hits and a Utah error to take a 6-4 lead, and they would hold on to the win by that same score.
“We didn’t like how we played in that first game,” said team captain Kate Dickman. “We knew we could play a lot better than that.”
Even though the Utes had a lead midway through the contest, it seemed like it was inevitable that Arizona State was going to break through, as the Sun Devils had seven hits in the first three innings.
Utah, on the other hand, was much more efficient in turning its hits into runs. Despite only having four hits the entire game, the Utes were able to plate four runs. All of Utah’s runs came off of home runs hit by Dickman, Hannah Flippen and Bridget Castro.
Despite the success they had at the plate in game one, the Sun Devils were cooled off by the Utah pitching in the next two games.
The Utes started a little slow in game two, but a solid pitching performance from Katie Donovan kept them in it long enough for the offense to start putting up runs. Arizona State scored its first and only run in the bottom of the first inning, and then Donovan only allowed three hits the remainder of the game.
The Utah hitters tallied nine hits, which led to eight runs. Bella Secaira, Anissa Urtez and Maddy Woodard all homered to help the Utes seal the 8-1 game two win.
“The emotions are all exciting,” Secaira said. “We’re really showing off all the hard work that we’ve put in.”
As was the case last series with Arizona, both teams entered game three with a chance to take the series win. And just like the series against the Wildcats, the Utes came out victorious.
Utah shut out the Sun Devils in game three, en route to winning the series. Runs were at a premium in the series finale, but Utah was able to get enough. The Utes plated one in the second, and then Dickman hit a solo shot in the fifth inning before Utah added two more runs in the seventh to take the game, 4-0.
“It’s just fun to enjoy the moment while also working hard,” Dickman said of the series win. “That was something I wanted to be sure to do with it being my last road conference series.”
Despite the low score, both teams hit the ball decently with Utah notching 12 hits and the Sun Devils getting seven.
Utah will have the week off before it prepares for its final regular season series with No. 18 Washington, which begins on May 7 at 6 p.m. at the Utah Softball Stadium.
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