By Diana Ly, SDA Media Relations Student Assistant
TEMPE, Ariz. – Jade Gortarez's RBI-double in the bottom of the 7th was exactly what No. 8 Sun Devil softball needed to battle back to win over the Stanford Cardinal, 4-3, Friday night at Farrington Stadium. Following the Sun Devil win, the crowd of over 1600 fans were treated to a fireworks display behind the wall in right field.
"That was an awesome experience for our team and our fans," head coach Trisha Ford said. "I would really like to thank our administration for making this a priority. we are sending off our seniors and having a big weekend for them. There are obviously a lot of emotions, but I am very happy that we figured out a way to get a win tonight."
Sophomore lefty G Juarez got the start in the circle for the Sun Devils, throwing another masterpiece in her six innings of work. Through her 26 batters faced, Juarez allowed just one earned run and one walk, while striking out eight Cardinal batters. Senior Breanna Macha entered in relief in Friday's game, striking out three batters en route to her 13th win of the season.
The ASU win marks the 16th time in program history that ASU reached the 40-win plateau, and the first time since the 2014 season when the Sun Devils recorded 46 victories.
Stanford (23-27, 2-17 Pac-12) put two runs on the scoreboard in the top of the first with two hits to take an early 2-0 lead. Lefty phenom G Juarez locked in shortly thereafter, keeping the Cardinal scoreless for the remainder of her outing. Although she earned a no-decision, Juarez added eight more strikeouts to her season total, sitting in 9th place in program history in single-season strikeouts with 258.
In the bottom of the fourth, junior Morgan Howe gave the Sun Devils a spark by knocking a home run, cutting Stanford's lead in half to 2-1. The long ball from Howe was her seventh of the season, good for second on the team behind Danielle Gibson's 11 home runs.
Freshman DeNae Chatman would come through in a huge spot in the bottom of the sixth, sending a two-run shot over the center field wall to give the Sun Devils their first lead of the matchup, 3-2.
In the Pac-12 battle, the Cardinal scored another run to tie the game 3-3 in the top of the seventh.
Stepping up to the plate in a tie game in the home half of the seventh, Marisa Stankiewicz came up huge for ASU. The senior launched a double off the wall in left field to put a runner in scoring position with just one out.
Gortarez stepped in and lofted a 1-0 pitch just over the head of Stanford's left fielder and made it all the way to second base with the knock, scoring pinch runner Brynley Steele from second base to secure a walk-off victory for the Sun Devils, 4-3.
The Sun Devils would combine to out-hit Stanford, 11-5, aiding in the Sun Devils being able to overcome a season high six errors in the contest.
"I was happy that we were able to figure out a way to get this win," Ford added. "I think we had some big hits in some big situations. DeNae (Chatman) had a huge hit in a big situation. Morgan Howe crushed a ball tonight. I just wasn't happy with how we showed up on the field today. I wasn't happy with our focus and that is something that we absolutely need to tidy up."
Up next the Sun Devils continue the three game series against the Cardinal, with the first pitch in game two slated for Saturday, May 5 at 6 p.m. PT. The game will be streamed live on Arizona State's Pac-12 Live Stream. Fans can follow all of the action from the 2018 Sun Devil softball season by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
TEMPE, Ariz. – Jade Gortarez's RBI-double in the bottom of the 7th was exactly what No. 8 Sun Devil softball needed to battle back to win over the Stanford Cardinal, 4-3, Friday night at Farrington Stadium. Following the Sun Devil win, the crowd of over 1600 fans were treated to a fireworks display behind the wall in right field.
"That was an awesome experience for our team and our fans," head coach Trisha Ford said. "I would really like to thank our administration for making this a priority. we are sending off our seniors and having a big weekend for them. There are obviously a lot of emotions, but I am very happy that we figured out a way to get a win tonight."
Sophomore lefty G Juarez got the start in the circle for the Sun Devils, throwing another masterpiece in her six innings of work. Through her 26 batters faced, Juarez allowed just one earned run and one walk, while striking out eight Cardinal batters. Senior Breanna Macha entered in relief in Friday's game, striking out three batters en route to her 13th win of the season.
The ASU win marks the 16th time in program history that ASU reached the 40-win plateau, and the first time since the 2014 season when the Sun Devils recorded 46 victories.
Stanford (23-27, 2-17 Pac-12) put two runs on the scoreboard in the top of the first with two hits to take an early 2-0 lead. Lefty phenom G Juarez locked in shortly thereafter, keeping the Cardinal scoreless for the remainder of her outing. Although she earned a no-decision, Juarez added eight more strikeouts to her season total, sitting in 9th place in program history in single-season strikeouts with 258.
In the bottom of the fourth, junior Morgan Howe gave the Sun Devils a spark by knocking a home run, cutting Stanford's lead in half to 2-1. The long ball from Howe was her seventh of the season, good for second on the team behind Danielle Gibson's 11 home runs.
Freshman DeNae Chatman would come through in a huge spot in the bottom of the sixth, sending a two-run shot over the center field wall to give the Sun Devils their first lead of the matchup, 3-2.
In the Pac-12 battle, the Cardinal scored another run to tie the game 3-3 in the top of the seventh.
Stepping up to the plate in a tie game in the home half of the seventh, Marisa Stankiewicz came up huge for ASU. The senior launched a double off the wall in left field to put a runner in scoring position with just one out.
Gortarez stepped in and lofted a 1-0 pitch just over the head of Stanford's left fielder and made it all the way to second base with the knock, scoring pinch runner Brynley Steele from second base to secure a walk-off victory for the Sun Devils, 4-3.
The Sun Devils would combine to out-hit Stanford, 11-5, aiding in the Sun Devils being able to overcome a season high six errors in the contest.
"I was happy that we were able to figure out a way to get this win," Ford added. "I think we had some big hits in some big situations. DeNae (Chatman) had a huge hit in a big situation. Morgan Howe crushed a ball tonight. I just wasn't happy with how we showed up on the field today. I wasn't happy with our focus and that is something that we absolutely need to tidy up."
Up next the Sun Devils continue the three game series against the Cardinal, with the first pitch in game two slated for Saturday, May 5 at 6 p.m. PT. The game will be streamed live on Arizona State's Pac-12 Live Stream. Fans can follow all of the action from the 2018 Sun Devil softball season by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.