"We are in a good place," head coach Trisha Ford said. "Obviously the 7-0 start is a result of their hard work and executing when we needed to execute. I think for us it is going to be about the process. We are going to have struggles throughout the year, but our responsibility is to stay committed to the process. They did a great job of executing it this weekend, but we are just very proud of them."
The Sun Devils will begin the weekend with a pair of games Friday beginning with a 5:15 p.m. matchup against Wichita State before closing the evening with an 8:00 p.m. first pitch against Illinois State. The action continues Saturday when the Sun Devils face Illinois State again, this time at 5:15 p.m. before facing the 17th-ranked Missouri Tigers at 8:00 p.m. Sunday, the Sun Devils will cap the weekend with a 12:15 p.m. game against South Dakota. On Monday, the No. 21 Sun Devils will face off against Boston College at 5:15 p.m. AZT.
*Full PDF Notes To Follow*
LEADING OFF
• Arizona State Softball opened the 2017 season last week, with a 5-0 win over UTEP at Farrington Stadium. The win gave first year head coach Trisha Ford her first career win at ASU, but also improved the Sun Devils to 39-7 all-time in season openers, and marked the 22nd-consecutive year that the Sun Devils have started the season with a win.
• In the opening game of the 2017 season, pitcher Dale Ryndak threw the Sun Devil's seventh perfect game in school history. The junior threw five innings of perfect softball, finishing the day with six strikeouts after facing just 15 batters in the win. The perfect game was the first since Hillary Bach threw a perfect game on March 2nd, 2012. The Perfect game by Ryndak, was just the seventh perfect game thrown in ASU softball history.
• ASU will look to build off of their success from the 2016 season that saw the Sun Devils win a combined 32 games en rout to the Devils' 12th straight NCAA postseason appearance.
• The Sun Devils spread the winning around this past weekend. All four pitchers in the ASU staff emerged from the weekend with at least one victory, with no pitcher suffering a loss or no decision. Freshmen Alyssa Loza led the Sun Devils in the circle with a perfect 0.00 ERA in seven innings pitched. In total, ASU pitchers combined to throw 46.0 innings, allowing just seven runs on 34 hits.
• While the Sun Devil defense bowed to allow just 34 hits on the weekend, the Sun Devil offense combined for 50 total hits, including 16 extra-base hits. The offense ended the weekend with 78 total bases and 35 RBI.
• Following an undefeated start to the season, the Sun Devils found themselves listed in the USA Today Top-25 for the first time this season. The No. 21 ranking for the Sun Devils in the USA Softball poll marks the first time they have appeared in the nation poll since April 19, 2016.
• The Sun Devils rank near the top of the Pac-12 in numerous statistical categories, but none more important than wins. The Sun Devils are one of just two teams in the conference with seven wins, joining Oregon as the only other seven-win team through the first week of play.
ABOUT THE LITTLEWOOD CLASSIC
From the beginning of Sun Devil Softball in 1967 to 1989, the founder and leader of ASU Softball was Head Coach, Mary Littlewood. Littlewood was a staple and founder of the majority of the women's sports at ASU today.
Under Mary Littlewood, ASU won two championships and advanced to the College World Series nine times. Littlewood compiled a record of 551-222-1, with winning seasons each of her 22 years at the helm of the historic Sun Devil Program.
The annual tournament, now in its 12th year, is named in honor of the founder of Sun Devil Softball.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Wichita State:
The Shockers enter the Littlewood classic with an undefeated 4-0 record on the young season. This past week, Wichita State traveled to Houston Texas to compete in the 2017 Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational, where they rattled off four straight wins over Wright State, UC Santa Barbara and host team Houston. WSU was led in the circle in their opening weekend of play by Katie Malone, who pitched her way to a 3-0 record with four appearances on the weekend. The Crete, Neb., native completed 18.2 innings where she allowed just three runs on 17 hits.
Illinois State:
The Redbirds will arrive in Tempe, riding a two-game win streak from a week ago. Illinois State opened their season at the 2017 USF Wilson DeMarini Tournament in Tampa, Fla., where they opened the year against three ranked teams. ISU fell in their first game of the year to No. 25 South Florida, before narrowly falling to No. 6 Michigan (4-2). The Redbirds received an offensive spark from Shannon Felde, who led the team at the plate with a 10-18 outing that included five RBI and three extra-base hits.
No. 17 Missouri:
The 17th-ranked Missouri Tigers started the 2017 season on the road at the Charleston Southern Tournament. The Tigers opened the season with a loss to No. 14 JMU, but responded quickly, winning their next four games, including a rematch with the Dukes. The pitching staff for Missouri was the catalyst for the wins, as their four-player rotation combined for a 2.26 ERA in 34 innings on the weekend. Offensively, Kristen Mack led the Tigers at the pate as she ended the first week of play with a .429 batting average that includes two doubles, a homer and three RBI. The senior was also a threat on the base path, swiping two bases on the weekend as well.
South Dakota:
The Coyotes will head to Tempe looking to flip their fortunes after falling in four of their last five contests. USD started their season in California where they ended the weekend against No. 22 Notre Dame. South Dakota held the Irish off the board in the first three innings of the contest, but the ND bats came through in the third and fifth inning, giving the Fighting Irish a 2-0 lead heading to the sixth. South Dakota responded with a run of their own in the top of the sixth, but it wouldn't be enough as the No. 22 Irish would escape with a 2-1 victory. Shelby Keil has been a brights pot for the Coyotes in the opening weekend, going 4 for 13 at the plate, to lead the team with a .308 batting average.
Boston College:
On Monday evening, the Sun Devils will continue their home stand against Boston College. The contest will mark the 13th home contest for the Sun Devils in the 2017 season. The Eagles are off to a quality start in the 2017 season, and enter this weekend winners of three of their last four contests. This weekend, BC will travel to Tucson Ariz., to compete in the Wildcat invitational, where they will play five games in three days. Boston College is led at the plate by Jordan Chimento, who hit .533 with two home runs and seven RBI in four games last weekend at the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational en route to the first ACC Player of the Week honor. Chimento's batting average and home-run total place her third in the ACC in both categories. She ranks 27th nationally and seventh in the ACC with 1.75 RBI per game.
WHAT'S NEXT:
Following the Littlewood Classic, the No. 21 Sun Devils will hit the road to travel to Palm Springs to compete in the 2017 Marry Nutter Classic. ASU will compete as part of an incredibly talented field at the event with matchups withSaint John's ,No. 19/17 Texas A&M, No. 11/10 Michigan, as well as Notre Dame and Texas who both received votes in both national polls this past week.