TEMPE -- The No. 20/21 Arizona State University softball team (25-9, 1-2 Pac-12) returns to Pac-12 action this weekend as it heads to the Bay Area for the first road series of the season against the Cal Golden Bears. The three-game series will get underway Friday, April 1 in Berkeley, Calif.
The series is scheduled to be televised via the Pac-12 Networks Bay Area and Pac-12 Arizona. Both Friday and Saturday’s contests are set for a 4 p.m. PT first pitch while Sunday’s finale will get underway at 2 p.m. PT.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION
Fans will be able to view or listen to each game in the series via the Pac-12 Networks. The three games will each be televised by Pac-12 Bay Area and Pac-12 Arizona. Kate Scott and Amanda Freed will be on the call. Fans are encouraged to check their local listings for coverage in their area. Fans may also be able to acess the broadcast online at Pac-12.com/live dependent on their cable or internet provider.
#10THINGS (Twitter-Friendly Notes)
- All but 4 members of the ASU roster have already reached career highs in ABs and Jenn Soria is on pace to join the group by season’s end.
- With 115 walks this season, ASU is currently third in the Pac-12 and 34th in the country.
- The Sun Devils have been ranked in the @NFCAorg Coaches Poll 164 consecutive times dating back to Week 2 of the 2006 season.
- When getting batters into a full count this season, @kezlur has struck out 25 and limited opposition to 4-of-44 (.091) hitting.
- ASU’s returning players combined for just 29 home runs last year. Already, the Devils have 39 this season, good for 12th in NCAA.
- In her last 9 starts, @kezlur has posted a 0.87 ERA with 48 strikeouts to just while allowing a paltry total of seven earned runs.
- The Sun Devils have stolen 39 bases this season after stealing just 12 bases in all of 2015.
- After struggling in the field early (13 errors in 21 games), @cgonzales112 is a perfect 39-for-39 fielding in last 13 games.
- Facing a full count, @jennsoria5 is currently 5-of-9 w/ 7 walks and 2 Ks, good for a .750 on-base percentage on the payoff pitch.
- ASU’s pitching staff and exceptional outfield have allowed opponents to manage just 21 doubles this season, 18th fewest in the nation.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN BEARS
Cal comes in to the weekend with a 14-12-1 record and is 2-2-1 in Pac-12 action after coming off a series victory over Oregon State. Don’t let the 12 losses fool you though, as the Golden Bears have played the 16-toughest strength of schedule this season.
Cal has lived by its pitching rotation this season with an arsenal of five pitchers who have all seen significant action this season and tree of which maintain under a 2.00 ERA. Nisa Ontiveros would be considered the ace of the group with her exception 1.43 ERA in a team-leading 10 starts. She has struggled to get an offense to back her up however, posting a 3-4 overall record despite a 72-10 strikeout to walk ratio.
On offense, Cal has five batters with over a .300 average this season, led by Lindsay Rood’s .386 clip. Not necessarily a team that hits for a lot of power, Cal has just 13 home runs this season and 26 doubles. Rood (.554 slugging/3 HR/5 doubles) and Taurie Pogue (.582 slugging/5 HR/3 doubles) lead the power hitters on the team. It is a team with a lot of speed on the base path, however, going 38-for-43 on stolen base attempts this season.
THE VIEW FROM THE TOP
- The Sun Devils have been ranked in the NFCA Coaches Poll 164 consecutive times, a streak that dates back to Week 2 of the 2006 season.
- The Sun Devils entered the top-10 in Week 6 of that season and have since been ranked in the top 10 in 129 of the 164 polls that have taken place since the team entered the rankings in 2006.
- ASU is one of just five programs to lay a claim to being in every poll since early in that 2006 season, joining Michigan, UCLA, Oklahoma and Alabama at the top of the list.
- The Sun Devils inclusion in the Top 25 in this year’s NFCA Preseason Poll marks the 10th consecutive preseason poll the Sun Devils have made an appearance.
- The Sun Devils moved up one spot in the rankings this week after the team’s three-game sweep over Texas Tech.
K IS FOR STRIKEOUT...OR KESSLER... SAME THING
Redshirt junior transfer Kelsey Kessler has quickly become a staple in the ASU pitching rotation and has been ASU’s most consistent ace to date.
- Kessler is 12-5 on the season with a team-leading two saves.
- It should be noted that three of Kessler’s losses have come in games where she has allowed one or fewer earned runs and in all three of those games, the eventually winning run was unearned (two international tiebreakers runs in extra innings against Fullerton and No. 9 James Madison and two unearned seventh inning runs following an infield error against Arizona).
- She is third in the Pac-12 among pitchers with at least 100 innings pitched with a 1.89 ERA to date and 17th nationally with four shutouts this season.
- The junior leads the way with 109 strikeouts, a total that is over three times more than any other pitcher on the squad and currently good for third in the conference and just outside the top 30 nationally.
- Her 475 career strikeouts (including her time at Kansas) currently rank eighth among all the NCAA Division I junior pitchers in the nation.
- She has allowed just 21 walks this season for over a 5:1 strikeout to walk ratio.
- Kessler has been exceptional in her last nine STARTS, as she has pitched 56.1 of 62.0 possible innings with a miniscule 0.87 ERA with 48 strikeouts to 10 walks while allowing just seven earned runs. Shocklingly, despite the dominating efforts, she is 5-4 in those games as the team has struggled to get run support behind her at times.
IN THE NIKK OF TIME
The Sun Devils aren’t exactly fielding a team of veterans in 2016 and the only multi-year starter in the field coming into the year was senior Nikki Girard. As a result, her leadership will be heavily relied on to help pace ASU this season.
- A proven gap-hitter, Girard is tied for 10th in ASU history with 37 career doubles and needs just one to move into a tie for ninth.
- Girard has been otherworldly with runners in scoring position this season and is 20-for-43 on the year (.465) when she has a chance to bring a runner home. That total is especially impressive when you consider she had just 16 hits with RISP in the entirety of 2015.
- All but nine of her 29 hits this season have come with a runner in scoring position and she leads the closest Sun Devil by six hits in the category.
- She is second on the squad with 29 RBIs this season and leads the squad with eight doubles.
- Perhaps the most exciting aspect of her game, however, is her ability to post at least one highlight reel defensive play per game at second base as she finished the year with a solid .963 fielding percentage last season and earned a spot on the All-Pac-12 Defensive team as a result. She continues to field at a high-clip at one of the toughest positions on the field with her .951 fielding percentage this year.
- Girard was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week after a stellar weekend at the Diamond Devil Invite where she when 10- for-12 with nine RBI and slugging 1.414.
PUT ME IN, COACH
Senior Jennifer Soria was among ASU’s hottest players to close out the 2015 campaign and looks to carry that into 2016. The recipient of the team’s hardest worker award for two consecutive seasons, Soria perfectly exemplifies the John Fogerty classic at centerfield.
- Soria is batting .344 on the season (fifth on the team) with a team-leading 17 walks - good for sixth in the Pac-12.
- Her 30 runs scored this year lead the team while she is currently second on the team with six home runs.
- Soria has advanced runners 34 times (leads team) on 57 chances this season (.596) and has been clutch in bring home a runner from third when there are less than two outs on the board, doing so 7 times on 8 chances.
- With eight doubles this season, Soria has already matched her previous CAREER total of eight entering the season.
- Soria is an absolutely deadly hitter when she gets ahead in the count where’s 14-30 (.466). She’s worked the count full 18 times this season, good for third on the team, and is 5-for-9 on the payoff pitch with a team-leading seven walks to just two Ks for a .750 OBP.
- Against #8 Tennessee, Soria drew the lone walk of the game from UT ace Erin Gabriel with two outs in extra innings. Soria would steal second immediately and move to third on an infield single before sliding in headfirst for the winning run on a passed ball.
- Soria’s defense is good for just about a highlight a game and earned her Pac-12 All-Defensive honors last season.
GET ON BASE AND CHIL
Nichole Chilson came in this season under the radar after seeing limited action as a freshman, but the sophomore is quietly putting up some of the best numbers on the team.
- Chilson is second on the team with a .391 average this season with 21 RBIs - fourth on the team - and a .454 OBP.
- The sophomore has been ASU’s most consistent batter with two outs this year, batting 14-for-29 (.483) on the season when it’s up to her to keep the inning alive. That’s three more hits with two outs than any other Sun Devil and she also leads the team with 12 two-out RI on the year.
TAYLOR GANG
True freshman Taylor Becerra became the first frosh to earn a starting nod this season, doing so at third base. She became the first true freshman to start for the Sun Devils at third since the person she replaced at that position: Haley Steele back in 2012.
- Becerra has been a pleasant surprise early this season and leads the team with a .429 average (seventh in the Pac-12) and a .500 OBP (10th in the Pac-12). Her .429 average is currently ranked 11th among all Division I freshmen this season.
- She had her 12-game hitting streak snapped against Arizona but that streak remains the longest by any Sun Devil this season.
- As a leadoff batter, Becerra has been admirable, going 12-of-26 (.462) this season.
- The freshman has been elite when it comes to moving baserunners as she has done so at a team-leading .690 clip this season, advancing runners on 29-of-42 chances.
- Becerra’s speed makes her a threat to reach any time she can get the ball into play and caused several errors this season with fielder’s trying to rush throws to first.
CHELSEA LATELY
Entering the season, there wasn’t much doubt that Chelsea Gonzales would be the top returning bat in the Sun Devil order this year and she has more than lived up to that billing thus far.
- Gonzales leads the Sun Devils leads the Sun Devils with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs this season, totals good for third and sixth in the conference, respectively.
- After struggling in the field early this season wtih 13 errors in the first 21 games of action, Gonzales has been perfect 39- for-39 fielding in the last 13 games.
- Gonzales’ pop in the lineup play a heavy factor in the success of the team. In ASU’s 25 wins, Gonzales is batting .426 (third on team) with nine homers and a team-leading 26 RBI while slugging .902. In ASU’s nine losses, Gonzales is .143 (10th on team) with just one homer, six RBI and a .286 slugging percentage.
- Gonzales has 11 two-out RBIs - second on the team and a staple of her career at ASU.
- There have been numerous times this season that opponents have avoided Gonzales in the lineup, demonstrated by her 15 walks this season to just seven strikeouts.
- In her first season as starting shortstop last year, Gonzales finished with 122 assists and 102 putouts to just 10 errors (.957 fielding percentage). Her .957 fielding percentage was second among Pac-12 shortstops behind only Utah’s Anissa Urtez (.958), who did so in 43 fewer chances.
- Gonzales continues her climb up the ASU record books, now 15th all-time with 29 home runs and 16th with 119 RBI.
ABS OF SPIEL
Senior Abby Spiel quietly become a steady contributor to the Sun Devils last season and has been true to that consistent form in 2016.
- Spiel is batting .345 this season (fourth on team) and is second on the team with 26 runs scored..
- She has knocked nine RBIs this season, which is notable as she had just five in her career entering 2016.
- Spiel is 11-for-12 on stolen bases this season, leading the team in the category and second in the Pac-12.
- A speedy slap-hitter, Spiel’s forte has been advancing baserunners this year and she leads the team with 33 advancements on 50 opportunities (.660)
- Last season, she finished the season with the team’s second-highest batting average with a .364 clip on 28-of-77 hitting.
RYNDAK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN
Sophomore RHP Dale Ryndak had a solid freshman campaign last season and is looking to build upon that in year two.
- Ryndak has opened 2016 with a respectable 3.05 ERA and is the only undefeated pitcher on the roster at 7-0.
- The sophomore has struck out 31 batters this season and allowed just seven walks in 55.0 IP, a total that is tied for third nationally among pitchers with over 50 innings pitched.
- The sophomore has been near impossible to get a hit off of when she has runners in scoring position as the opposition is 9-for- 58 (.155) against her when she gets in a jam this year.
- She’s also efficiently closed out innings as opponents are just 3-of-28 (.107) against her when they have runners in scoring position and two outs.
- Ryndak finished with a 14-8 record last season and was fourth in the Pac-12 with 37 batters struck out looking.
- She finished with 143.1 innings pitched on the season, ninth in the conference, and her 82 total strikeouts were 10th in the Pac-12.
BREE IT ON
Breanna Macha established herself as a legitimate pitching option as a true freshman last season and picked up where she left off following a strong finish in 2015.
- The sophomore is currently 6-4 with 28 strikeouts while allowing just seven home runs, the ninth lowest total in the Pac-12 this year. She had given up 20 through 34 games last season.
- Macha led the team as a freshman in wins (18), strikeouts (152) and total ERA (3.69) - the fifth-lowest total in the Pac-12 among pitchers with 40 or more appearances - and earned All-Pac-12 and NFCA All-West Region honors while being named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team as well.
- Macha finished with 152 strikeouts, the fourth highest total in the Pac-12.
- Her 212.1 innings pitched were second most in the conference while she was third in the conference with five saves.
FA LEI-BOOM-A
Freshman first baseman Fa Leilua has been ASU’s most active player of the bench this season and sure to become a fan favorite with her awesome name and penchant for hitting the ball out of the park
- Leilua is currently third on the team with a .389 average with four home runs and three doubles on 21 hits.
- Leilua is one of just four ASU players who have maintained over a .300 average in a all of ASU’s wins as well as in all of the team’s losses.
ADIOS, PALACIOS
Junior catcher Sashel Palacios was perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the 2015 campaign as she went from a reserve role as a freshman to the starting catcher by the midway point of her sophomore season.
- Palacios is one of ASU’s most consistent hitters and currently holds the team’s second long hitting streak on the season at 10 games.
- Palacios is batting .299 on the year with two homers and 18 RBIs and is 9-for-11 this season with a runner on third and less than two outs - leading the Devils in the category.
- She finished fifth on the team with a .323 average last season. Her .459 on-base percentage was good for third on the team and she was incredibly proficient at advancing baserunners, doing so 52 times in 93 opportunities, a .559 average that was third among the team’s starters.
- Her 141 putouts were second on the team and she led the team with five runners thrown out attempting to steal base.
- Palacios doesn’t have an error during the regular season, earning Pac-12 All-Defensive team honors while also being named a Third-Team All-West Region selection.
KICKING IT INTO AGUIRRE
Senior catcher Katee Aguirre looks to have a much larger role in 2016 behind the plate in both senses.
- Katee Aguirre has been solid early for the Sun Devils, third on the team with five doubles this season while posting a .320 overall average.
- With six doubles this season, Aguirre has crushed her previous career total of one in the categor and is third on the team.
- Her 15 RBIs are sixth on the team and notable as she had just 13 total RBIs in all of 2015. Her four home runs are tied for third on the team.
- Last year, Katee Aguirre and Sashel Palacios combined for 173 recorded putouts and 13 assists with ZERO errors during the regular season for a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. The duo’s perfect fielding percentage was notable as there were just seven players in the Pac-12 conference with 50 or more chances during the regular season that did not have a single error.
FULL COUNT ON ME
ASU put up exceptional numbers last season and had an uncanny way of finding success with a full count and little has changed this year.
- Of the Devils with the minimum number of at-bats this year, ASU is 31-of-70 (.442) when facing a full count.
- The Sun Devils have drawn a walk 30 times to 13 strikeouts with a full count, led by seven walks from Jennifer Soria and five from Taylor Becerra. With the 30 walks included, ASU has a .610 on-base percentage with a full count.
- On the flip side, RHP Kelsey Kessler has absolutely thrived when she gets hitters in a full-count situation. Facing 57 full counts this season, Kessler has allowed batters to go just 4-for-44 (.091) with 25 strikeouts and only 13 free passes.
WALK THIS WAY
While ASU’s strikeout numbers may be up a bit compared to last season, the team is still exceptional on getting on base without having to swing the bat
- The Devils are currently third in the Pac-12 with 115 walks this season, a total that is ranked 34th nationally.
- On the flip side, the ASU pitching staff has allowed just 48 walks this season and ranks first in the Pac-12 in fewest walks allowed to date. That total is good for 10th in the country among programs who have pitched a minimum of 150 innings.
- ASU had 276 walks overall in 2015 --the eighth-highest total nationally- to create nearly a 2:1 walk to strikeout ratio.
KEEP IT CLEAN
The Sun Devils have always prided themselves on being exceptional both at the plate and in the field and ASU has done a solid job of cleaning up its defense in recent weeks.
- In the first 23 games, ASU had 27 errors (1.2 per game) and was fielding at just a .956 clip.
- Since then ASU has just five errors in its last 11 games (.46 per game) while fielding .984.
- Only three of those errors came from field players and Chelsea Gonzales has returned to her Pac-12 All-Defensive self to lead the charge. After struggling in the field early this season wtih 13 errors in the first 21 games of action, Gonzales has been perfect 39-for-39 fielding in the last 13 games.
ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US
ASU lost 64 percent of its extra base hits to graduation following last season and returns just 29 of the 81 home runs the Devils hit on the year (35.8 percent). That said, fans can expect a slightly different offense than they might be accustomed to and part of that success is going to come on the base path.
- The Devils have stolen 39 bases to date, a very notable tally as ASU had just 12 TOTAL steals in the 2015 campaign. The total is currently second in the Pac-12 and in 72nd nationally out of nearly 300 teams after finishing as one of the 10 worst clubs in the category in 2015.
- Abby Spiel’s 11 stolen bases this season are second in the Pac-12.
- On the flip side, ASU has thrown out seven runners attempting to steal a base this season - good for second in the Pac-12.
- ASU has used pinch runners 56 times in 34 games thus far and brought those pinch runners home on 27 occasions (.482).
- ASU has already laid down 14 sacrifice bunts already this season compared to having five TOTAL in 2015.
TAKE IT FOR A RIDE
The storyline around the Sun Devils entering the season was that the squad would need to utilize small ball to win games. While the sample size is still small, ASU is winning games in all manner of ways and the extra base hits are certainly a part of that.
- The Devils have hit 39 home runs in 2016, tied for 12th nationally and third in the Pac-12. The total is notable as those returning to the team returned a total of just 29 of the home runs it hit last year after the graduation of five power-hitting seniors.
- ASU has hit 46 doubles to date (fourth in the conference), nearly on pace for the total it had at this point last season despite the loss of power in the lineup.
- As a team, ASU is batting .330 heading into weekend, 30 points higher than it was batting at this point last season.
THE DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
The Sun Devils lost five all-conference caliber players after last season and returned just one multi-year starter in Nikki Girard. Needing a large number of players to step up this season in that absence, ASU has gone above and beyond what might have been expected.
- The top three hitters for the Sun Devils this season include two true freshmen in Taylor Becerra (.429) and Fa Leilua (.389) and a player that saw two at-bats last season in Nichole Chilson (.391).
- Despite being a three-year starter, Girard was just a .259 career hitter coming into 2016. This season she’s already surpassed her RBI total from 2014 and 2015 (29 compared to 24 and 23) and is batting an impressive .312.
- If you were to include freshmen, entering the weekend there are just FOUR Sun Devils on the roster that do not already have a career high in at-bats. Jennifer Soria (93) is well on pace to surpass her previous high of 109.
- Only Nikki Girard, Sashel Palacios and Chelsea Gonzales have a possibility of NOT passing career highs for at-bats this season.
KEEPING IT IN THE PARK
One area the Sun Devil pitching staff has certainly improved in is keeping the ball in the park after a terrible year in the category last season.
- The sample size is small but the results look to be there early in 2016 as ASU has allowed just 26 home runs to date. Through this point last year, ASU had given up 41 homers.
- ASU gave up 81 bombs in 2015 and that ranked as the worst total in the entire nation.
- Of the 266 runs scored against the Devils last season, 130 came as a result of home runs - nearly half of the total runs scored against the Devils on the year.
SCORE MORE TO WIN MORE
Much of ASU’s success this season has been made while capitalizing on having runners in scoring position while limiting the opposition in those circumstances.
- ASU is batting .340 as a team (111-of- 326) with runners in scoring position this season while limiting opponents to just 47-of-192 hitting (.245) with RISP.
- Nikki Girard has paved that attack with 20 hits on 43 at bats with runners in scoring position while Jennifer Soria, Abby Spiel and Nichole Chilson all have double-digit hits this season with RISP.