TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State Softball improved to 4-0 on the season with a 6-3 win over San Diego on the second day of play at the 2017 Kajikawa Classic Friday evening at Farrington Stadium.
Following a solid outing from freshman Alyssa Loza in the first leg of Friday's doubleheader, head coach Trisha Ford turned the ball over to Giselle Juarez for her collegiate debut in the circle. The Glendale, Ariz., native provided the Sun Devils four strong innings en route to her fist career victory as a Sun Devil, leaving the game with a final line of four hits two runs and five strikeouts.
"I thought Giselle had moments of brilliance and then she had a couple moments that didn't go as well as she would have liked it to," Ford said. "I was really proud of how she bounced back. It's learning how to respond to [adversity]."
The Sun Devils struck first in the home half of the first inning as Chelsea Gonzalez lifted a deep fly ball to center field that scored Skylar McCarty to give ASU an early 1-0 lead.
The Toreros would respond in the second, where Kailey Hill blasted a solo shot to left field to tie the game at 1-1 heading to the third. In the top of the third, USD would take a one-run lead off a Hannah Gilliland double, sending the game to the third frame.
Arizona State did respond with a run of their own in the home half of the inning as Marissa Stankiewicz smoked a single to left field, plating Margret Stahm from second, sending the game to the fourth inning tied 2-2.
The Sun Devil bats jumped to life in the bottom of the fourth, combining for four runs on five hits, including a two-out double from senior catcher Sashel Palacios that gave ASU a commanding 6-2 advantage heading to the fifth.
"As a senior, as a leader, I put a lot of pressure on myself to come out here and go 2-for-2," Palacios said. "Every girl on this team has put in the preparation so I think it's just timing. It's really starting to click for us."
The Toreros tacked on another run in the fifth, but junior Dale Ryndak closed out the final three frames giving up just one run on three hits while tallying four strikeouts. With the win, the Sun Devils now have had a different pitcher notch a win in each of their respective starts.
"Dale is a gamer and she wants to compete and she wants the ball," Ford said. "From a pitching coach standpoint, that's all you can ask because she wants the ball every time."
Sun Devil softball will be back in action tomorrow, Saturday Feb. 11, as the team will compete in a mid-afternoon doubleheader featuring games against Indiana and UT-Arlington. The first game for the Sun Devils is slated for a 1:30 p.m. first pitch with the second game to follow at 4:30 p.m.
Fans can keep up to date with all of the happenings of the 2017 ASU Softball team by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
Following a solid outing from freshman Alyssa Loza in the first leg of Friday's doubleheader, head coach Trisha Ford turned the ball over to Giselle Juarez for her collegiate debut in the circle. The Glendale, Ariz., native provided the Sun Devils four strong innings en route to her fist career victory as a Sun Devil, leaving the game with a final line of four hits two runs and five strikeouts.
"I thought Giselle had moments of brilliance and then she had a couple moments that didn't go as well as she would have liked it to," Ford said. "I was really proud of how she bounced back. It's learning how to respond to [adversity]."
The Sun Devils struck first in the home half of the first inning as Chelsea Gonzalez lifted a deep fly ball to center field that scored Skylar McCarty to give ASU an early 1-0 lead.
The Toreros would respond in the second, where Kailey Hill blasted a solo shot to left field to tie the game at 1-1 heading to the third. In the top of the third, USD would take a one-run lead off a Hannah Gilliland double, sending the game to the third frame.
Arizona State did respond with a run of their own in the home half of the inning as Marissa Stankiewicz smoked a single to left field, plating Margret Stahm from second, sending the game to the fourth inning tied 2-2.
The Sun Devil bats jumped to life in the bottom of the fourth, combining for four runs on five hits, including a two-out double from senior catcher Sashel Palacios that gave ASU a commanding 6-2 advantage heading to the fifth.
"As a senior, as a leader, I put a lot of pressure on myself to come out here and go 2-for-2," Palacios said. "Every girl on this team has put in the preparation so I think it's just timing. It's really starting to click for us."
The Toreros tacked on another run in the fifth, but junior Dale Ryndak closed out the final three frames giving up just one run on three hits while tallying four strikeouts. With the win, the Sun Devils now have had a different pitcher notch a win in each of their respective starts.
"Dale is a gamer and she wants to compete and she wants the ball," Ford said. "From a pitching coach standpoint, that's all you can ask because she wants the ball every time."
Sun Devil softball will be back in action tomorrow, Saturday Feb. 11, as the team will compete in a mid-afternoon doubleheader featuring games against Indiana and UT-Arlington. The first game for the Sun Devils is slated for a 1:30 p.m. first pitch with the second game to follow at 4:30 p.m.
Fans can keep up to date with all of the happenings of the 2017 ASU Softball team by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.