Utah softball will travel to Palo Alto, Calif. this weekend for a three-game series against Stanford. The Utes enter the weekend with a 20-12 overall record and an 0-6 record in Pac-12 play.
In the other dugout, the Cardinal enter the weekend 14-17 and 0-3 in Pac-12 play. As illustrated by both teams’ records, they are each looking to record their first victory in conference competition.
The Utes hope to be the team to reach victory first, but they know Stanford will be just as hungry.
“We’re both in the same boat, looking for the first conference win,” said Utah coach Amy Hogue.
Utah is ready to get back to its winning ways after opening its Pac-12 schedule against the unquestioned top two teams in the conference in UCLA and Oregon. Though Utah has high hopes for its season, the Utes know they still have some room to grow to get on the same level those two teams are on.
“No one is just going to roll over and just say those teams are better than them,” Hogue said. “We played some close games against them, but we’re just not ready to beat them yet.”
Despite the early losses, the Utes are staying focused and know everything they want to accomplish is still in front of them.
“None of our goals have changed or are unreachable,” Hogue said. “One of our goals is to improve in our conference from the prior year.”
The Utes finished sixth in the Pac-12 last year, so that is the bar Utah hopes to reach this season. The Stanford series this weekend will provide the Utes with a great opportunity to continue working toward that goal.
Hogue described Stanford as a team that is very similar to last year’s Utah team, but she was quick to mention that the outcome of the series isn’t dependent on what the Cardinal do. It’s all about what the Utes do.
“We have to go out and do the things we are good at,” Hogue said. “We’ll have to do those things in a conference game on the road, but I believe we can do that.”
Stanford’s last series came against Oregon State, where they dropped three straight games. They are averaging .299 as a team at the plate, but the Cardinal have one player in particular Utah will need to take notice of when she is at the plate.
Kayla Bonstrom is hitting .469 and has tallied eight home runs for the Cardinal this season, while she also boasts an on-base percentage of .548.
As far as pitching goes, Stanford has an ERA of .491 thus far on the year. After facing some extremely tough opponents inside the circle over the last few weekends, this matchup looks like one that Utah hitters could take advantage of. Look for the Utes to be aggressive at the plate early on in the tournament, as they try and get off to a quick start.
Hannah Flippen and Shelby Pacheco enter the series a little banged up, but Hogue says they will likely be ready to roll this weekend.
This is most likely the series where people will get a real feel for what kind of potential the Utes have for this season. This Stanford series is the first conference slate of games where Utah will go into with a clear edge, though it will be a challenge doing it on the road.
First pitch is set for Friday at 4 p.m. MT, and games will be aired on the Pac-12 Networks.
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