Long Ball Not Enough for Sun Devils to Down No. 2 Bruins

LOS ANGELES – Sun Devil Softball dropped the opener of its series at No. 2 UCLA, 7-3, on Friday night at Easton Stadium. 

Three solo home runs off the bats of Jazmyn Rollin, Sara Kinch, and Jordyn VanHook was all the offense Arizona State (21-18, 5-11 Pac-12) could manage in the series opener with the Bruins (41-4, 16-3 Pac-12). UCLA scored in four of their six innings at the plate for a seventh straight win over the Sun Devils in Westwood.

START US OFF @JazzyRollin ?? ??

Sun Devils strike first ??

B1 ASU 1 | UCLA 0

?? Pac-12 Network#ForksUp /// #O2V pic.twitter.com/nWAJtwPfJh

— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 22, 2023

Mac Osborne went four innings in the circle to start for ASU and allowed four runs with two strikeouts. Kenzie Brown allowed three runs in her one-plus innings, while Deborah Jones recorded three outs without allowing a hit.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Rollin got the Sun Devils on the board early with a two-out solo home run to left in the top of the first inning.
• UCLA countered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second behind two singles, a stolen base, and a wild pitch.
• The Bruins threatened with two more singles in the bottom of the second before Kinch threw out a potential base stealer, and Osborne forced a lineout to end the inning.
• Osborne worked out of another jam in the third by holding the Bruins to just one run despite UCLA starting the frame with runners on second and third with nobody out.
• VanHook walked, and Makenna Harper singled in the ASU fourth, but UCLA kept the Devils off the scoreboard.
• A solo home run with two outs in the Bruin fourth extended the UCLA lead to 4-1.
• Kinch cut the deficit to 4-2 with a solo home run leading off the fifth inning.
• After the first three hitters of the UCLA fifth reached, Brown tallied two strikeouts before a three-run double opened the ASU deficit to 7-2.
• The long ball played its part for the Sun Devils again in the sixth inning when VanHook sent one over the wall in left-center to extend her lead in the Pac-12.
• ASU made it interesting in the seventh with a double from Shannon Cunningham and a walk by Jazmine Hill to set up a drive to the wall from Yanni Acuña that was caught to end the game.

GAVE THAT ONE A RIDE ?? ?? @sarakinch25 hits her first home run of the season to bring us within two ??

?? Pac-12 Network

T5 ASU 2 | UCLA 4#ForksUp /// #O2V pic.twitter.com/MuJ7Dud1JP

— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 22, 2023

NOTABLES

• ASU hit multiple home runs in a game for its third consecutive road game and 16th time this season. It is the first time since March 5 against Houston they had three-plus home runs in the same game.
• The only other team with three home runs off UCLA's Megan Faraimo this season was No. 1 Oklahoma on February 26.
• The current six-game losing streak is the team's longest since dropping nine straight during the 2019 season.
• VanHook moved into a tie for 12th in program history with her 17th home run of the season.
• This is the second straight game with a home run for VanHook and the ninth time this season she hit a home run in consecutive games.
• Rollin's home run was her eighth of the season and first since April 2 against Washington.
• Kinch hit her first home run as a Sun Devil. It came nearly a year from her last, which was against St. Thomas on April 26, 2022, for Minnesota.
• Kinch became the 11th different ASU player to hit a home run this season.
• The double by Cunningham was her fourth of the season and her team-leading sixth hit as a pinch hitter this season.

No. 17 for 17 ?? ?? @jordynvanhook gets in on the Sun Devils' home run barrage.

T6 ASU 3 | UCLA 7

?? Pac-12 Network#ForksUp /// #O2V pic.twitter.com/HsZSYI7Qrf

— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 22, 2023

UP NEXT
ASU and UCLA will play game two of this series on Saturday at 8 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.