Tempe, Ariz.- The No. 22 Arizona State softball team topped the California Golden Bears in game one of the three-game series with a, 9-7, win Friday night at Farrington Stadium.
Junior pitcher, Breanna Macha, battled against the Golden Bears for six innings before fellow junior Dale Ryndak came in to close out the top of the seventh. The two pitchers combined limited the Bears to nine hits and four earned runs en rout to Machas 12th- win, and Ryndak's second save of the season.
The Sun Devils, out-hit the Bears, 12-9, including three ASU home runs. Friday's game marked the 14th- game this season with multiple home runs, and was the fifth game this season with three or more long balls.
Pitching ruled the first two innings for both sides but, it was the long-ball that would give the Sun Devils the momentum they were looking for. In the bottom half of the third inning, sophomore, Fa Leilua blasted a ball over the left field scoreboard, giving ASU a three-run lead over Cal.
In the bottom of the fourth, junior, Nichole Chilson connected on ASU's second home run of the night, this time a two-run blast to deep center to make it a 5-0 Sun Devil lead with nobody out in the frame. Senior Sashel Palacios added an RBI of her own with a single to right field sending the game to the fifth with ASU in control, 6-0.
In the top of the fifth, the Golden Bears plated their first run of the game on a sacrifice fly to center field cutting the Sun Devil lead to five runs. Cal's offense also battled in the top of the sixth inning chipping away at the ASU lead with another three runs off of a leadoff double and a pair of Sun Devil errors, making the score 6-4 midway through the fifth.
The Sun Devil seniors, Chelsea Gonzales and Palacios, came up big for the home-side adding three insurance runs in the bottom half of the sixth inning with a sacrifice fly by Gonzales and a two-run bomb by Palacios.
In the top of the seventh, with the leadoff batter on base, a pair of hits helped Cal tack on three more runs to the score, but Ryndak battled back to close out the 9-7 Sun Devils win.
Arizona State will be back in action tomorrow night for game two of the three-game series against the Golden Bears. First pitch for Saturday's game is scheduled for 5 p.m. PT and will be televised on PAC-12 Network. Fans can also follow all of the action on Twitter by following @ASUSoftball.
Junior pitcher, Breanna Macha, battled against the Golden Bears for six innings before fellow junior Dale Ryndak came in to close out the top of the seventh. The two pitchers combined limited the Bears to nine hits and four earned runs en rout to Machas 12th- win, and Ryndak's second save of the season.
The Sun Devils, out-hit the Bears, 12-9, including three ASU home runs. Friday's game marked the 14th- game this season with multiple home runs, and was the fifth game this season with three or more long balls.
Pitching ruled the first two innings for both sides but, it was the long-ball that would give the Sun Devils the momentum they were looking for. In the bottom half of the third inning, sophomore, Fa Leilua blasted a ball over the left field scoreboard, giving ASU a three-run lead over Cal.
In the bottom of the fourth, junior, Nichole Chilson connected on ASU's second home run of the night, this time a two-run blast to deep center to make it a 5-0 Sun Devil lead with nobody out in the frame. Senior Sashel Palacios added an RBI of her own with a single to right field sending the game to the fifth with ASU in control, 6-0.
In the top of the fifth, the Golden Bears plated their first run of the game on a sacrifice fly to center field cutting the Sun Devil lead to five runs. Cal's offense also battled in the top of the sixth inning chipping away at the ASU lead with another three runs off of a leadoff double and a pair of Sun Devil errors, making the score 6-4 midway through the fifth.
The Sun Devil seniors, Chelsea Gonzales and Palacios, came up big for the home-side adding three insurance runs in the bottom half of the sixth inning with a sacrifice fly by Gonzales and a two-run bomb by Palacios.
In the top of the seventh, with the leadoff batter on base, a pair of hits helped Cal tack on three more runs to the score, but Ryndak battled back to close out the 9-7 Sun Devils win.
Arizona State will be back in action tomorrow night for game two of the three-game series against the Golden Bears. First pitch for Saturday's game is scheduled for 5 p.m. PT and will be televised on PAC-12 Network. Fans can also follow all of the action on Twitter by following @ASUSoftball.
Not 1??, Not 2??, BUT 3?? Home Runs for @ASUSoftball tonight. #Pac12SB ?? pic.twitter.com/YaLtuCK7ui
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) May 6, 2017