Feb. 11, 2012
TEMPE, Ariz. – Arizona State softball mercy ruled Texas State 9-0 in five innings as Hillary Bach picked up her second win in two starts. The Sun Devils then lost 3-0 against No. 9 Tennessee in the night game.
Katelyn Boyd has remained steady at the plate, hitting at a .429 clip with six hits and five runs scored, tied for a team best with Bailey Wigness who is 4-for-7, a .571 batting average. In the circle, senior pitcher Bach has a 0.00 ERA over 14.1 innings pitched with 14 strikeouts.
GAME ONE: No. 1 ASU 9, TEXAS STATE 0 (5)
Eight of the Devils’ nine runs came in the second inning, starting with freshman Elizabeth Caporuscio’s second home run of the season. ASU then capitalized on two illegal pitches and a passed ball to bring home Sam Parlich, before a Lucy Aubrecht homer scored two. The Bobcats walked in two more runs, and a double from Parlich pulled the total to eight. Aubrecht would finish the game 2-for-3 at the plate.
Freshman Haley Steele’s double in the top of the fourth brought home pinch-hitter Bethany Kemp who reached on a fielder's choice, and the nine-run lead ended the game at the end of the fifth. Hillary Bach earned her second win on the weekend, pitching all five innings and striking out four.
Amber Freeman finished the ballgame 1-for-2 with two RBI and one run scored. Parlich pitched in 1-for-1, two RBI and one run scored.
GAME TWO: No. 9 TENNESSEE 3, No. 1 ASU 0
The Lady Volunteers put up two runs in the opening frame on a Madison Shipman double, and the score would remain the same until a home run from Lauren Gibson in the top of the seventh pulled Tennessee to the final score of 3-0.
ASU left six on base unable to bring anyone across the plate, with its most promising at-bat coming from Boyd whose hit in the third just narrowly missed clearing the fence in center field. Instead Boyd would round the bases for a triple but the Lady Vols shut down the opportunity with two-straight outs to end the frame.
The Sun Devils out-hit Tennessee seven to their six connections - Parlich went 2-for-2 and had a walk while Boyd was 2-for-3. Sophomore pitcher Dallas Escobedo now falls to 1-1 for the year with the loss and Tennessee's Ellen Renfroe picks up the win to be a spotless 4-0.
The Devils wrap up the Kajikawa Classic against the Cal Poly Mustangs on Sunday at 1:30 p.m MT.