TEMPE, Ariz. –The 22nd- ranked Arizona State softball team fell, 12-3, in their final appearance of the 2017 regular season series to No. 10 UCLA on Saturday afternoon.
"I think we did some things out of character in the last two games," head coach Trisha Ford said. "In my coaching head, we are getting it out of our system so we are ready to go in postseason. For me, the biggest thing I talked to them about, was that we seemed to be doing things in slow motion. We spent a lot of time second guessing ourselves instead of being confident."
The Bruins attacked early, platting a run in the first inning off of a base hit. The scoring continued for UCLA in the second inning when a trio of hits brought in three more runs for the Bruins, giving them an early, 4-0, lead over the Sun Devils.
The ASU offense rallied back in the bottom half of the second as sophomore, Fa Leilua hit a rocket over the left field fence that plated the first run for the home side. On the weekend, Leilua hit .625 going five-for-eight at the plate, including two home runs and four RBI.
It was only fitting that on senior day, senior Margaret Stahm had an unbelievable offensive performance. In her last game at Farrington stadium, the senior went two-for-two with two home runs and two RBI. Throughout the three-game series, Stahm was four-for-eight with three home runs.
Unfortunately, the long ball was not enough for the Sun Devils as UCLA continued to press and score eight more runs in the final three innings of the game. The UCLA offense hit their stride in the fourth, bringing in three runs on thiree hits and a pair of Sun Devil errors. The UCLA offense closed the door in the fifth, plating four more runs to close out the 12-3 road victory.
The Sun Devils will await their fate in the NCAA tournament as the field of 64 teams will be announced in tomorrow's NCAA Selection Show. Fans can keep up with all of the action from postseason play by following the team @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
"I think we did some things out of character in the last two games," head coach Trisha Ford said. "In my coaching head, we are getting it out of our system so we are ready to go in postseason. For me, the biggest thing I talked to them about, was that we seemed to be doing things in slow motion. We spent a lot of time second guessing ourselves instead of being confident."
The Bruins attacked early, platting a run in the first inning off of a base hit. The scoring continued for UCLA in the second inning when a trio of hits brought in three more runs for the Bruins, giving them an early, 4-0, lead over the Sun Devils.
The ASU offense rallied back in the bottom half of the second as sophomore, Fa Leilua hit a rocket over the left field fence that plated the first run for the home side. On the weekend, Leilua hit .625 going five-for-eight at the plate, including two home runs and four RBI.
It was only fitting that on senior day, senior Margaret Stahm had an unbelievable offensive performance. In her last game at Farrington stadium, the senior went two-for-two with two home runs and two RBI. Throughout the three-game series, Stahm was four-for-eight with three home runs.
Unfortunately, the long ball was not enough for the Sun Devils as UCLA continued to press and score eight more runs in the final three innings of the game. The UCLA offense hit their stride in the fourth, bringing in three runs on thiree hits and a pair of Sun Devil errors. The UCLA offense closed the door in the fifth, plating four more runs to close out the 12-3 road victory.
The Sun Devils will await their fate in the NCAA tournament as the field of 64 teams will be announced in tomorrow's NCAA Selection Show. Fans can keep up with all of the action from postseason play by following the team @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
As the 2017 regular season comes to a close, we want to recognize @seashel_13 @Margaret_Stahm and @cgonzales112! #SeniorDay pic.twitter.com/HU7sN5fWsI
— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) May 13, 2017