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State 48 Battle at Club Farrington

by thesundevils.com
Apr 15, 2021

TEMPE, Ariz. -- The No. 13 Sun Devil Softball team (25-10, 6-6) concludes its nine-game homestand this weekend as a State 48 battle ensues at Club Farrington on April 16-18. The action against No. 8 Arizona (26-5, 6-2) starts on Friday night at 6 p.m. MST and will continue with a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon and conclude with a single-game Sunday matinee. All games are slated to air on the Pac-12 Network. 

The Pac-12 Conference and participant softball programs agreed to play four-game series each weekend of conference play. Three of the games count toward the conference record, while the second game of Saturday's doubleheader goes down as a non-conference matchup. 

Arizona State boasts three-straight series wins over then-No. 6 Washington, Utah, and Stanford. The team also notched a non-conference win against Grand Canyon last Tuesday in Sun Devil fashion - scoring 21 runs in a five-inning run-rule. 

Maddi Hackbarth extended her Pac-12 Conference home run lead as she went yard for the 17th time this season against the Cardinal. Her 48 RBI also leads the Conference. Maddi and her twin, Kindra, go back and forth in the team's leading batting average. This week, Maddi boasts a .408 average - fourth in the Conference - while Kindra is second on the team with a .393. Kindra is second in the Pac-12 in stolen bases with 16. 

Eight Sun Devil players are batting over .300, including Maddi and Kindra, Makenna Harper (.384), Yannira Acuna (.375), Jazmine Hill (.373), Alli Tatnall (.343), Bella Loomis (.312), and Denae Chatman (.301). 

SUN DEVIL REWIND
ASU dropped the first of four games against Stanford, 6-2, after the team's dominant 21-run performance against GCU on Tuesday night. Stanford snuck past ASU with five runs in the first two innings and held onto the lead throughout the game.

ASU wrote the rest of the story in the remaining three games against Stanford. On Saturday night, the team bounced back with a vengeance, scoring ten runs, including a grand slam from Alynah Torres to protect ASU's chance at winning the series. With that win, the conference series knotted at 1-1. The doubleheader continued with a non-conference bout. ASU put on a clinic in late-game heroics as Jazmine Hill secured the doubleheader sweep with a walk-off moon shot. 

The series win was up for grabs and came down to Sunday's performance. ASU battled in the circle and at the plate. The Sun Devil hitters combined for three solo home runs in ASU's 4-2 win. Lindsay Lopez took absolute control in the circle, holding Stanford scoreless through six innings. The Sunday dub was Lopez's 11th of the season.  

STRAIGHT FACTS

  • Royalty is closing in on the 100 Club. The true freshman boasts 91 career strikeouts and leads the pitching staff this season.
  • ASU tied a program record last Tuesday night against GCU with 13 runs in the second inning.
  • The seven ASU doubles in Tuesday's game tied a program record for most doubles in a game (the last time was 2015 against Indiana State). Players who hit a double on Tuesday: Kindra Hackbarth, Emily Cazares, Makenna Harper, Maddi Hackbarth, Yanni Acuna (2), and Halle Harger. 
  • With 21 runs versus GCU, ASU tied their season-high and was just three short of the program record 24 runs in a game.
  • The team's .341 batting average is 11th in the nation and third in the Pac-12.
  • Maddi Hackbarth - who leads the Pac-12 in home runs and RBIs
  • Jazmine Hill and Maddi Hackbarth lead the squad in multiple-RBI games. Hackbarth notched 13 games with multiple, followed by Hill with 11 games.
  • Jazmine Hill boasts a four-game hitting streak - making contact in each game of the series against Stanford last weekend. The sophomore went yard twice and finished the weekend with a .727 batting average. She reached first in eight of her 11 at-bats, notching five runs, two doubles, one triple, and four RBI. 
  • Thanks to a whopping seven doubles against GCU, the Sun Devils are now 10th in the nation in doubles on the season with 56. 
  • ASU's 71 home runs on the season are first in the Pac-12 and third in the nation behind Arkansas (72) and Oklahoma (93)
  • ASU is in the top-10 nationally in doubles (10th), home runs per game (third), slugging percentage (second), scoring (10th)
  • Kindra Hackbarth is on an eight-game reached base streak - her longest was 15 straight games. 

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