TEMPE ? Haley Steele hit two home runs and the No. 7/6 Sun Devil softball team broke open a tight game in the fifth inning en route to a 10-2 victory over the Cal Golden Bears in six innings on Saturday in Berkeley, Calif.
Mackenzie Popescue buckled down after a tough first inning, pitching five scoreless innings after giving up two in the first to pick up her team-leading 17th victory of the season, improving to 17-1 overall and 4-0 in Pac-12 action.
The Sun Devils (34-6, 8-3 Pac-12) launched three home runs in the contest and scored eight runs in the fifth and sixth innings to break open a 2-2 tie while using a flurry of exceptional defensive plays to force the early end to the action.
Despite the final score, it was Cal (20-13, 3-3 Pac-12) that put the pressure on early.
Cheyenne Cordes reached on a leadoff walk and came home two batters later as Danielle Henderson laced a line drive home run to left field to put the Golden Bears up 2-0 in the bottom of the first.
The Sun Devils wasted no time responding in the top of the second, however, as Steele launched a leadoff shot to dead center to bring ASU back within one run.
Bethany Kemp and Nikki Girard would reach on back-to-back one-out walks and advanced to second and third on a Katee Aguirre fly out to right field to bring up Bailey Wigness, who lined a one between the shortstop and third baseman for an RBI single that evened things up at two.
That’s where the score would stay for the next two and a half innings while the Sun Devil defense fended off several Golden Beat opportunities with some phenomenal defense.
The first of the plays actually came in the bottom of first as Nikki Girard took a high chopped from behind the second base bag to throw out Alex Robben at home from her back foot. Girard would then make another impressive play in the bottom of the third, diving to stab at a ball that look sure to trickle into right field and making the throw to first from her stomach for the out.
Later in the inning, Alleah Laxamana dropped a two-out single into center with two on that led to Alix Johnson humming one to the catcher from center for the tag at the plate and an end to the inning to keep things even at 2-2.
Hey, @ESPN! Take your pick of any of these @ASUSoftball defensive plays for your #SCTop10 today! http://t.co/OewjBJIb5K via @Pac12Networks
? ASU Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 6, 2014With pinch runner Abby Spiel on base and one out on the board, Bethany Kemp and Nikki Girard hit back-to-back single to load the bases.? Spiel was forced out at home on a Sierra Rodriguez pinch hit fielder’s choice to keep the bases loaded with two outs on the board.
That brought up pinch-hitter Chelsea Gonzales, who did exactly what she seems to have done all season.? The freshman launched a long fly ball to the gap in left that just squeezed in between the left and center fielders for a base-clearing three RBI double to give ASU a 5-2 lead. ?The hit gave Gonzales nine two-out RBI in Pac-12 action this weekend, a total that currently leads the team.
WATCH- This Chelsea Gonzales 3RBI double broke a 2-2 tie against @CalSoftball! http://t.co/BAa7FRSTx6 via @Pac12Networks
? ASU Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 6, 2014Cal would threaten in the bottom half of the inning, however, as Cordes continued her impressive day with a leadoff single to left. Henderson singled two batters later to put two on with just one out but Popescue picked up a much-needed strikeout of Robben for the second out of the inning.
Kostreba would reach on a single up to middle with two outs to load the bases but Popescue struck out Vanessa Alvarez to get out of the jam and maintain ASU’s lead.
The Sun Devils paid her back by blowing the game open in the top of the sixth inning that started with a leadoff walk by Cheyenne Coyle.
Amber Freeman singled for her second hit of the game to bring up Steele, who sent a dinger over the left field fence for her second homer of the game to put ASU up 8-2.
WATCH- Haley Steele blows the game open against @CalSoftball with her second dinger of the game! http://t.co/kn2u2gBX1g via @Pac12Networks
? ASU Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 6, 2014Caporuscio followed with her team-leading 14th double of the season to bring up Kemp, who went ahead and added the icing on the cake with her team-leading 10th home run of the season to give ASU the eventual final lead at 10-2.
Popescue would close things out in the bottom half of the inning, finishing the game with four strikeouts, two walks and just two runs allowed despite giving up nine hits.
The Sun Devils will return to the diamond tomorrow at 11 a.m. PT/MT as they look for the road series sweep in a game that will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks.