A strong back half was how the No. 10 University of Utah softball team played its three-game series against the No. 23 Arizona State Sun Devils. Although the Utes dropped the first game on Friday, April 21, they came back in the last two games to win those individual games and the overall series.
“We grew as a team a lot,” said head coach Amy Hogue. “We played in a big time atmosphere this weekend and found a way to win the series again. I was really proud with the work they did.”
In the opening game of the series, the Utes worked their way to a 4-0 lead over the Sun Devils in the third inning. Freshman BreOnna Castaneda reached first base on an error and freshman Alyssa Barrera singled. After Hannah Flippen hit a double, Castaneda and Barrera got in a couple of runs. Senior Anissa Urtez then hit a home run to score Flippen and herself, but the Sun Devils would fire back two runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning.
In the sixth inning, the Utes loaded the bases as senior Kay Kay Fronda and freshman Kelly Martinez singled one out, and Castaneda reached bases via another error. As senior Delilah Pacheco took to the plate, she got to first via a fielder’s choice, and Fronda scored. Barrera followed with another single that allowed for Barrera to score, and after Uretz was walked, the Utes had a 7-2 edge by the end of the inning.
The Sun Devils fired back again as they got a pinch-hit three-run homer, and they made it a two-run game. Martinez hit a home run to distance the Utes from the Sun Devils, but ASU hit walk-off triple in the bottom of the seventh to win 9-8.
The Utes rallied back in the second game after multiple late-inning runs gave Utah a one-run win. In the first inning, the Utes went up 2-0 after Barrera doubled to left field and Flippen homered.
The Sun Devils were quick to answer with two runs to tie up the game, but in the second inning ASU took the lead after it hit a two-run homer. The score stayed that way until the fourth when junior Heather Bowen hit a homer.
By the seventh inning, the Utes were still trailing the Sun Devils by one run. Senior Bridget Castro singled to the left field, and freshman Ryley Ball came in as the pinch runner. Martinez singled to left field as Ball advanced to second. Castaneda came in as the pinch runner for sophomore Ally Dickman, and she got to second on an error, and Ball scored.
With a double from Fronda, Castaneda and Martinez ran home. Pacheco made it to the bases, but got out trying to go from first to second as Fronda advanced to third. After Flippen singled, Fronda ran home. The Utes couldn’t stop the Sun Devils from scoring in the bottom of the seventh, but they held them off long enough to clinch a 7-6.
The last game of the series was slower than the previous two as the Utes didn’t get a run until the fourth inning. Barrera was first up at bat and she was walked, and when Flippen singled on a bunt, Barrera advanced to second and continued to third when Urtez grounded the ball on a bunt out to third base. With another ground ball from Bowen, Barrera ran home to give the Utes a 1-0 advantage.
ASU tied the game at 1-1 in the fifth inning, but the Utes took back the lead in the seventh after Castro homered to left field. The Utes managed to keep the Sun Devils from scoring in the bottom of the seventh as they came away with a 2-1 victory.
“[This weekend] woke us up a little bit that every team in the Pac-12 is going to give us a good game,” Barrera said. “It let us know that we have a target on our backs with every team that is facing us. We knew that Arizona State was going to want to beat us, but I think we did a good job playing our own game and finishing off winning the series.”
Up next for the Utes, they will take a break from their Pac-12 schedule as they head to Weber State to take on the Wildcats on Wednesday, April 26. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. MT.
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