TUCSON – Sun Devil softball dropped the finale of its weekend series at No. 19 Arizona 9-8 on Sunday afternoon as both teams rallied on multiple occasions throughout the contest.
Arizona State (18-25, 2-16 Pac-12) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning for the second time in the series when Tanya Windle singled home Audrey LeClair. The Sun Devils trailed 2-1 in the top of the third inning when Alesia Denby hit a three-run home run to left that gave the team a 4-2 advantage.
Arizona (31-13-1, 12-9 Pac-12) countered with the game's next four runs to lead 6-4 when ASU came to the plate in the sixth. With two outs, ASU got a single from Libby Walsh and a double from LeClair. The Wildcats then intentionally walked Kelsey Hall before Sara Kinch delivered a grand slam to left center to put ASU in front 8-6.
The lead held through six as Deborah Jones stranded the bases loaded in the U of A sixth. The Sun Devils were unable to add to their lead in the seventh, and then Arizona scored three in the bottom of the inning to walk off with the 9-8 victory.
ASU got a hit from eight of the nine starters, including multi-hit games from Kayla Lissy and Walsh. The top three in the order – LeClair, Hall, and Kinch – each scored two runs, and Jordyn VanHook walked twice.
The Sun Devils will now return to Farrington Stadium, where they will play the final two weekends of the regular season at home. The first is a three-game set with California that begins on Friday at 6 p.m.
NOTABLES
Arizona State (18-25, 2-16 Pac-12) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning for the second time in the series when Tanya Windle singled home Audrey LeClair. The Sun Devils trailed 2-1 in the top of the third inning when Alesia Denby hit a three-run home run to left that gave the team a 4-2 advantage.
Arizona (31-13-1, 12-9 Pac-12) countered with the game's next four runs to lead 6-4 when ASU came to the plate in the sixth. With two outs, ASU got a single from Libby Walsh and a double from LeClair. The Wildcats then intentionally walked Kelsey Hall before Sara Kinch delivered a grand slam to left center to put ASU in front 8-6.
The lead held through six as Deborah Jones stranded the bases loaded in the U of A sixth. The Sun Devils were unable to add to their lead in the seventh, and then Arizona scored three in the bottom of the inning to walk off with the 9-8 victory.
ASU got a hit from eight of the nine starters, including multi-hit games from Kayla Lissy and Walsh. The top three in the order – LeClair, Hall, and Kinch – each scored two runs, and Jordyn VanHook walked twice.
The Sun Devils will now return to Farrington Stadium, where they will play the final two weekends of the regular season at home. The first is a three-game set with California that begins on Friday at 6 p.m.
NOTABLES
- The grand slam from Kinch was her second of the season and the third of the campaign by a Sun Devil
- This is the fourth consecutive season a Sun Devil has hit multiple grand slams in the same season
- Denby's home run was her second in the past 10 games after having just one in the 21 games preceding
- Denby had her team-best eighth multi-RBI game of the season and her third with at least three RBIs
- VanHook drew two walks for the second straight game after not walking in 23 consecutive games played before Saturday