TEMPE, Ariz.- After finding themselves down eight-runs to start the seventh inning, the 18th-ranked Sun Devil softball team (25-8, 5-1) rallied to win the series finale in crazy fashion over the Utah Utes, 18-17, at Farrington Stadium Sunday afternoon.
"When we have big innings, we have big innings.," head coach
Trisha Ford said of her team's nine-run seventh inning. "We never lost our fight. Alli Tatnall,
Maddi Hackbarth,
Kindra Hackbarth, I feel like I could go up and down our lineup because everyone contributed. I'm almost at a loss for words, that's a big comeback right there."
Down early, the Sun Devil offense went to work in the home-half of the second inning, scoring five runs. Following a
Jade Gortarez lead-off walk, catcher
Maddi Hackbarth crushed her 14th-home run of the season over the right-field wall, to pull the Sun Devils within one-run.
After a
DeNae Chatman double and
Bella Loomis walk,
Kindra Hackbarth stepped into the batters-box looking to put ASU ahead. The right-fielder did just that, connecting on a no-doubter over the centerfield wall to give ASU a 5-3 lead.
Unfortunately, the Sun Devil lead would be short-lived as the Utes would post five runs in the top of the third to jump back out to an 8-5 lead.
Utah would add two more runs in the top of the fourth via a wild-pitch and single, pushing the score to 10-5. In just the next inning, the visitors added three more runs to make it a 13-5 contest.
Needing to plate a run to avoid a run-rule, the Sun Devil offense came to life in the home-half of the fifth. Following a leadoff-single from senior
Skylar McCarty and a double from
Morgan Howe, Gortarez ripped a double down the right-field line to make it a 13-7 game.
Next up, M. Hackbarth would hit her second-home run of the day, unleashing a moon-shot over the left-field wall to cut the deficit to four-runs.
Utah would respond with a run of their own in the top of the six-inning via a solo-shot that pushed Utah's lead to 14-9.
Following a scoreless inning for ASU, Utah would do their best at putting the Sun Devils away with a pair of home runs in the top of the seventh that extended the lead to a seemingly insurmountable eight-runs, but the home dugout had other plans to end the series.
Finding themselves down eight-runs going into the final frame of the game, ASU would go onto score nine-runs to pull off the unimaginable, and defeat the Utes.
M. Hackbarth opened up the home-seventh with her third-home run of the afternoon, lacing a ball over the left-field fence.
DeNae Chatman followed the blast with a walk, before Alli Tantall reached base on a single. With two on and two out, K. Hackbarth kept the comeback alive with her second home-run of the game.
With what felt like all the momentum in the world on their side, senior
Skylar McCarty and Howe both drew a walk to set-up an RBI-double for Gortarez.
Up for the second time in the inning, Utah elected to intentionally walk M. Hackbarth allowing Howe to score in the very next at-bat, a Chatman walk. With six runs already across in the inning and bases loaded, the table was set for the designated player, Alli Tantall.
With two outs and ASU down by two runs, Tantall would connect on a walk-off three-run triple to send the Sun Devil's home with their first Pac-12 series sweep of 2019.
"It's great to have all the hard work pays off, not just for me but for everyone," Tatnall said of her walk-off winner. "We all have been working hard, fighting and putting in that effort and energy together. This wasn't just a 'me' win, this is a team win. This felt good."
Kindra and
Maddi Hackbarth both had huge days for the Sun Devils as they combined for five-home runs, and 11 RBI in the win. Sunday marked the second time this season that both Hackbarth twins have homered in the same game.
"I knew they were special," Ford said of the Hackbarths' performance at the plate. "Both of them play the game the right way and they work hard. I know their DNA and I know that they come here ready to play and that's something that I really love."
On the weekend, ASU combined to outscore the Utes, 45-21. As a squad, the Sun Devils posted an incredible .506 batting average, and an even more incredible 1.127 slugging percentage. In total, six different ASU players notched a home run, including Maddi and
Kindra Hackbarth who combined to hit eight long balls.
The Sun Devils will travel down south to face Arizona next weekend, March 29-31. The three-game series against the Wildcats is scheduled for a 5:00 p.m. start on both Friday and Saturday, before finishing the series with a 4:00 p.m. meeting Sunday. All three games of the series are set to be televised, with games one and two set to be broadcast by the Pac-12 Network, while game three is set for an ESPN-2 telecast. Fans can follow the action from the 2019 season by following @ASUSoftball on Twitter.
UPDATE: All tweets are from a Pac-12 Network re-run of the game on May 13, 2020. Former Volunteer Assistant Coach
Marisa Stankiewicz and then-centerfielder
Morgan Howe co-hosted the @ASUSoftball twitter account to share their reactions and insights to the game.
