Los Angeles -- The sixth ranked Arizona State Sun Devils picked up a huge, 3-0, shutout victory on the road at top-ranked UCLA Thursday evening. The win over the Bruins marked the Sun Devil's third win over a top-ranked opponent this season after defeating No. 1 Washington twice earlier in the year.
"This team played their hearts out tonight," head coach Trisha Ford said of her team's win. "Rachel Garcia had a heck of a night and she is a great player. I thought G (Juarez) did a great job of matching her. She made some big pitches for us in big situations. I think we just saw two of the best collegiate pitchers face off and G won today. It was a fun game."
Sophomore pitcher G Juarez was on fire in the circle again for the Sun Devils, holding the No. 1 Bruins to just three-hits in her seven innings on the circle, while striking out nine of the 25 Bruin batters she faced. With her win tonight, Juarez has now won 23 games on the year, with 12 of those wins coming in shutout fashion. Her nine strikeouts also pushes her season total to 268.
"This win certainly boosts our confidence," Juarez said. "We know that we can play against anyone, but defeating the number one team is exciting. We are excited, and this win is huge, but it is just one of three and we have got to come out and get back to work tomorrow."
With neither team able to jumpstart the offense in the first three innings of play, ASU would jump out front in the top of the fourth. Following a hard groundout to begin the inning, freshman first baseman Danielle Gibson wore an inside pitch and was promptly moved into scoring position by a perfect bunt-single from junior Morgan Howe. With two on and just one away in the frame, senior infielder Marisa Stankieiwcz unloaded on her ninth home run of the season to put ASU up, 3-0.
Following the three-run fourth, both pitchers would buckle down to hold the bats quiet. The Bruins would show signs of life in the seventh, working a leadoff runner on, but the Sun Devils would turn a double play and draw an infield pop-up up to wrap their first road win over the Bruins since the 2014 season. The win also moved ASU to 16-6 in Pac-12 play, the highest win total for the Sun Devils in conference play since the 2013 season.
"This win means everything to me," Stankiewicz said of the game-one victory. "This shows what kind of team we are capable of being. By doing the little things like dropping the bunt, wearing a pitch, it is awesome to play for a team that is selfless like that."
ASU will continue their three-game road series in Los Angeles Friday with game two set for a 7 p.m. first pitch. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network with Anne Marie Anderson and Tammy Blackburn on the call. Fans can also follow all of the action by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
MOST SUN DEVIL PAC-12 WINS
18-3, 2008
18-4, 2012
17-4, 2011
16-6, 2018
16-8, 2013
15-7-1, 2014
15-5, 1991
13-8, 2007
13-11, 1993
"This team played their hearts out tonight," head coach Trisha Ford said of her team's win. "Rachel Garcia had a heck of a night and she is a great player. I thought G (Juarez) did a great job of matching her. She made some big pitches for us in big situations. I think we just saw two of the best collegiate pitchers face off and G won today. It was a fun game."
Sophomore pitcher G Juarez was on fire in the circle again for the Sun Devils, holding the No. 1 Bruins to just three-hits in her seven innings on the circle, while striking out nine of the 25 Bruin batters she faced. With her win tonight, Juarez has now won 23 games on the year, with 12 of those wins coming in shutout fashion. Her nine strikeouts also pushes her season total to 268.
"This win certainly boosts our confidence," Juarez said. "We know that we can play against anyone, but defeating the number one team is exciting. We are excited, and this win is huge, but it is just one of three and we have got to come out and get back to work tomorrow."
With neither team able to jumpstart the offense in the first three innings of play, ASU would jump out front in the top of the fourth. Following a hard groundout to begin the inning, freshman first baseman Danielle Gibson wore an inside pitch and was promptly moved into scoring position by a perfect bunt-single from junior Morgan Howe. With two on and just one away in the frame, senior infielder Marisa Stankieiwcz unloaded on her ninth home run of the season to put ASU up, 3-0.
The only runs scored in @ASUSoftball's win over No. 1 UCLA? Marisa Stankiewicz's three-run jack ??
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) May 11, 2018
It's the @OpusBank #12Best Moment! pic.twitter.com/G3pbu4d6bX
Following the three-run fourth, both pitchers would buckle down to hold the bats quiet. The Bruins would show signs of life in the seventh, working a leadoff runner on, but the Sun Devils would turn a double play and draw an infield pop-up up to wrap their first road win over the Bruins since the 2014 season. The win also moved ASU to 16-6 in Pac-12 play, the highest win total for the Sun Devils in conference play since the 2013 season.
"This win means everything to me," Stankiewicz said of the game-one victory. "This shows what kind of team we are capable of being. By doing the little things like dropping the bunt, wearing a pitch, it is awesome to play for a team that is selfless like that."
ASU will continue their three-game road series in Los Angeles Friday with game two set for a 7 p.m. first pitch. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network with Anne Marie Anderson and Tammy Blackburn on the call. Fans can also follow all of the action by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
MOST SUN DEVIL PAC-12 WINS
18-3, 2008
18-4, 2012
17-4, 2011
16-6, 2018
16-8, 2013
15-7-1, 2014
15-5, 1991
13-8, 2007
13-11, 1993