By Scott Mammoser
TEMPE, Ariz. – After a five-year hiatus, the Arizona State
Sun Devils are back in the Women’s College World Series. A pivotal four-run
fifth inning broke a tie with South Carolina, and ASU rolled to a 5-2 victory
in the second game of the Super Regional on Saturday night.
The Sun Devils (45-11) made the WCWS seven out of eight
seasons between 2006 and 2013, winning the national championship in 2008 and
2011 and establishing themselves as one of NCAA softball’s premier programs.
This also marks the first career WCWS appearance for head coach Trisha Ford,
the third coach ASU has hired since Clint Myers departed for Auburn in 2013.
 |
| Coach Trisha Ford taking ASU back to WCWS |
“I’m just so proud of this group,” Ford said. “Nobody would
have thought at the beginning of the year we would be here except for us. This
is why I came to ASU, to get ASU back to the World Series. I said that in my
interview. I don’t think it’s sunk in yet, but we’re going to the Series.”
ASU freshman catcher Rylee Maston decided on a pretty good
time to pick up the first hit of her career. Entering the contest 0-for-10 in
13 games played, Maston delivered a double in the top of the second that sent
Jade Gortarez to third with two outs. Skylar McCarty drove Gortarez home for
the 1-0 lead on the ensuing play.
Designated as the home team, South Carolina (49-17) tied it
in the bottom of the fourth, when freshman Alyssa Kumiyama singled to score
classmate Jana Johns from third base. The Gamecocks left two runners stranded,
as ASU picked up consecutive bounces towards first to end the inning.
Taylor Becerra loaded the bases for the Sun Devils in the
top of the fifth with no outs. Morgan Howe, hitting more than .360, scored
McCarty to reclaim the lead, and freshman designated player DeNae Chatman
doubled to center for three more RBIs and still no outs. Kelsey Oh replaced
Cayla Drotar on the mound for the Gamecocks, maybe a little too late. The
Gamecocks added a run with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, when Tiara
Duffy’s double scored Johns, who was 2-for-4.
“Today’s game didn’t turn out the way we hoped, but I am so
proud of this team,” South Carolina coach Beverly Smith said. “This difference
in this season was a shift in the culture and how they competed. We have a lot
to look forward to. We have a great incoming class and we built a foundation.”
 |
| Sr. Macha shines in her last ASU home appearance |
Breanna Macha tossed six strikeouts for the win (16-6) in
the senior’s final appearance at Farrington Stadium. Macha made possibly the
defensive play of the game in the first inning, catching a Drotar line drive
and throwing out Mackenzie Boesel at first base.
“To finally live our dream out in OKC…,” Macha was at a loss
for words. “Hats off to them because they did battle until the last out. We
just needed to fight harder. It just shows the grittiness of this team. I’m
always going to go out there and compete on every pitch.”
The eighth-seeded Sun Devils will face a top-seeded Oregon
team in the first game of the WCWS on May 31 at Oklahoma City. The Ducks went
2-1 at ASU in mid-April, winning 5-0 and 9-1, before being shutout 4-0 in the
finale. Two-time defending champion Oklahoma, Washington, Georgia, Florida, and
UCLA also have advanced to the double elimination playoff of eight teams, while
Florida State and LSU will meet in a decisive third game at noon PT on Sunday
to qualify for the final spot.
“It means everything,” ASU senior second baseman Marisa Stankiewicz added. “Getting recruited to come here, their tradition going to the WCWS, and not being able to go the first three years was tough because we knew we had the talent. To finally do it our senior year means a lot.”
No comments:
Post a Comment