Courtesy: Sun Devil Athletics
TEMPE – Jennifer Soria scored the walk-off run on a passed ball and the No. 22 Sun Devil softball team upset No. 8 Tennessee, 5-4, on a botched intentional walk in extra innings.
In a contest featuring two members of NCAA Softball’s pantheon of elite programs – Tennessee ranks fifth in the last decade with a .796 win percentage with ASU right behind in sixth at .788 – it was the Devils who came out on top and evened the all-time series against the Volunteers at 2-2.
It was a game of dramatic highs and lows for the Sun Devils, who bookended six innings of forgettable softball with all five runs of their offense to upset the 2015 WCWS participanta on Friday night as part of the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe.
The Devils (3-0) scored a flurry of runs in the first inning and then spent the next six innings trying to solve Tennessee ace Erin Gabriel – with little success – before rallying for two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to overcome a 4-3 deficit and claim the 5-4 victory.
Breanna Macha (2-0) earned the win for the Sun Devils, pitching a gem in four innings of relief as she struck out six and gave up just three hits with no earned runs allowed.
Her effort followed a quality start from junior Kelsey Kessler, who pitched four innings and struck out four with just one walk. Kessler kept the Volunteers largely off balance early on before allowing the game-tying three-run home run in the fourth inning.
With the game even at 3-3 at the end of regulation, the Volunteers (2-2) drew first blood in extra innings with the international tiebreaker in effect (starting the inning with a runner on second base).
Meghan Gregg advanced to third on Shaliyah Geathers sacrifice bunt and scored on Megan Geer’s sacrifice fly to left field to take a 4-3 advantage.
The Devils needed some magic to keep the game going and the pressure was on after Nichole Chilson struck out to leadoff the bottom half of the inning.
Freshman Taylor Becerra advanced pinch runner Avi Davis to third on an infield ground out and Jennifer Soria walked and stole second, bringing Abby Spiel to the plate with two outs on the board and a pair of runners in scoring position.
Back-to-back balls put the senior ahead of the count but Gabriel rallied with a pair of strikes and Spiel and the Sun Devils faced their final strike of the game. But, the senior responded with an infield single to the shortstop, a chopper that couldn’t be corralled, bringing Davis home from third and tying things at 4-4.
Soria moved up to third on the play and Spiel would steal second, leaving an open base for Katee Aguirre in the three-hole – one in which the Volunteers had every intention of putting the senior designated hitter on with an walk.
But the plan unraveled as Tennessee catcher Lexi Overstreet could not get her glove on the intentional ball, which skipped to the backstop and allowed the speedy Soria to slide into home plate uncontested for the winning run.
It was an unfortunate ending for Gabriel, who pitched an absolute gem after the Devils lit up the Vols for three runs in the first inning.
Soria scored the first run of the game after some miscommunication between Gabriel and Overstreet – a sense of foreshadowing that wasn’t clear at the time – on a fielder’s choice bunt from Aguirre that brought the center fielder home from third.
Spiel came in on a Chelsea Gonzales out and Aguirre scored the final run of that inning on a sac fly from Sashel Palacios and the Devils looked to be in business early.
But that offensive spurt would be short-lived as Gabriel locked in and absolutely shut down the Devils for the remainder of the game, giving up just two more hits after ASU’s two-hit first innings and striking out 11 batters over the final seven innings.
Kessler started the game and settled in nicely for ASU, pitching three scoreless innings until giving up the three-run homer to Overstreet in the fourth, setting up the pitcher’s duel between Macha and Gabriel for the remainder of the game.
The Sun Devils return to the diamond tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. MT against East Carolina as the Kajikawa Classic continues at Farrington Stadium.
