March 14, 2012
TEMPE, Ariz. - The No. 5 Arizona State softball team finishes the non-conference regular season this weekend, traveling to Fullerton, Calif. to participate in the Judi Garman Classic. The Devils (25-2) face five teams, two of which are ranked in the Top 25. The schedule is as follows:
Official Tournament Page
Thursday, March 15
vs. BYU, 3:30 p.m. | GameTracker
vs. No. 10/11 Louisiana-Lafayette, 7:30 p.m. | GameTracker
Friday, March 16
vs. Fresno State, 11 a.m. | GameTracker
vs. No. 19 Michigan, 5:30 p.m. | GameTracker
Saturday, March 17
vs. Notre Dame, 9 a.m. | GameTracker
PREVIOUSLY FOR THE DEVILS
ASU swept the Diamond Devil Invitational, launching 10 home runs through the weekend, including Alix Johnson's first career grand slam and the first for the Sun Devils this season. The Devils have hit two or more home runs in 14 games, and have seen 10+ runs in 12 games. Hillary Bach remains undefeated at 11-0 with a 0.71 ERA.
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
BYU: The Cougars hold an overall record of 13-7, and are 2-3 against top-25 ranked opponents. Senior outfielder Delaney Willard is tied for fifth in the nation in batting average with an even .500, and for 12th in RBI per game with 1.35.
No. 10 Louisiana-Lafayette: The Ragin' Cajuns are undefeated so far this season, setting the program record with a 23-0 slate after beating McNeese State. Ranked No. 10/11, Louisiana-Lafayette leads the nation in runs per game at 9.86, and are sixth overall in both batting average (.366) and slugging percentage (.576).
Fresno State: The Bulldogs are 18-9 coming into Fullerton, led by senior pitcher Michelle Moses, who has tallied 10 home runs on the year along with five shutouts on the mound. Sophomore Stesha Brazil leads the team in batting average with .381 on the year.
No. 19 Michigan: The No. 19 Wolverines have a 16-7 record and are spearheaded by freshman pitcher Haylie Wagner. Wagner is 11-2 with a 1.32 ERA, which is 37th in the country. Her 11 victories tie her with Hillary Bach and five other NCAA pitchers at 12th overall.
Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish are 9-8 entering the Judi Garman Classic this weekend. Notre Dame is sixth in the Big East Conference in batting average at .266, with senior infielder Dani Miller hitting at .352 to lead the squad.
WIN STREAK
Arizona State rides a 21-game win streak into the weekend, not seeing a loss since facing Tennessee in the Kajikawa Classic. Of those 21 victories, 17 have come in six or fewer innings.
BOYD PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Katelyn Boyd received her second Player of the Week honor for March 4-11 after her dominant performance over the past week in five games. It marks the second week in a row that Boyd has gotten the weekly accolade. Boyd currently has a 16-game hitting streak, hitting .493 thus far on the season, which is second in the Pac-12.
DEVILS IN THE RANKINGS
Arizona State is tied for first in team batting average both nationally and in the Pac-12, matching California with a batting average of .375 on the year. The Devils lead many Pac-12 team statistics, including slugging percentage (.646), on-base percentage (.480), home runs (46), and stolen bases (41). Individually, the Devils have three players ranked in the top 50 nationally for batting average: Katelyn Boyd (.493), Bailey Wigness (.472) and Elizabeth Caporuscio (.447).