Softball Returns Home to Host No. 20 Cal
TEMPE – Sun Devil softball returns to Farrington Stadium this weekend for a three-game series with No. 20 California. The series is the first of two straight at home to close the 2024 regular season.
The final Pac-12 series against the Golden Bears will begin on Friday at 6 p.m. Game two is set for 5 p.m. on Saturday, and the series finale is on Sunday at noon.
All three games of the series will air on the ASU Live Stream and in the Pac-12 Now app.
ABOUT THE SUN DEVILS
Arizona State returns home at 18-25 overall and 2-15 in Pac-12 action. The Sun Devils have dropped 10 straight games overall and 12 consecutive conference games. They are 16-12 at home on the season.
ASU currently scores 4.95 runs per game by slashing .293/.366/.475. The Sun Devils have recorded 60 doubles, 15 triples and hit 38 home runs.
In the circle, ASU pitchers have a 4.62 ERA and 1.68 WHIP. The staff averages 4.92 strikeouts per seven innings, and the opposition is batting .300.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN BEARS
Cal comes to Tempe with a 31-14 overall record. They sit eighth in the Pac-12 with a 5-11 conference record. The Bears are 6-6 on the road this season, including 2-5 in road conference games.
At the plate, Cal is scoring 5.22 runs per game and leading the Pac-12 with 132 extra-base hits. They are also tops in the conference—and 14th in the NCAA—with 61 home runs while also hitting a conference-best 67 doubles.
The Cal pitching staff maintains a 3.21 ERA and 1.46 WHIP. Opponents are batting .255, while the Bears record 5.27 strikeouts per seven innings. They also lead the conference with 151 walks allowed.
EARLY OFFENSE
The ASU offense has been potent early in games, scoring 114 runs in the first three innings, which accounts for 54 percent of the team's 213 total runs. The team has crossed the plate 49 times in the first inning and scored 40 runs with a plus-12 run differential in the third inning.
DOUBLE (OR TRIPLE) TAKE
ASU ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in total doubles with 60 and an average of 1.40 per game. They have hit at least one double in a game 32 times and have multiple doubles in a game 15 times. They are currently on pace for 70 doubles, which would rank 13th in program history.
ASU has also tallied 15 triples during the year to lead the conference and tie for 16th in the NCAA. The Sun Devils have recorded multiple triples in the same game thrice, including three against New Mexico State on February 25. The 15 triples are the most since 1995 and tied for the 10th most for a season in program history.
BUNCH OF THIEVES
The Sun Devils have also used their team speed to steal 64 bases on the season. That total ranks third in the Pac-12 and 47th in the NCAA. ASU has stolen a base in 27 games and has had multiple steals in a game 19 times. The 64 steals are the eighth-most for a season in program history.
WINDLE PLAYS THE HITS
Tanya Windle continues to lead the Sun Devils – and rank ninth in the Pac-12 – with her .379 batting average. She is tied for the team lead with 13 multi-hit games and four three-hit games. Windle has never gone more than two consecutive games without a hit in her career, and she is 5-for-11 during her current four-game hitting streak.
HALL BALL
Kelsey Hall is batting .344 entering the weekend with 43 hits to rank 15th in the Pac-12. Hall also has 13 multi-hit games, and she has eight doubles, two triples, and five home runs. Hall has recorded a hit in seven of the past eight games, going 9-for-25 with a double and three home runs.
LASER LECLAIR
Audrey LeClair has also delivered over the past eight games, going 10-for-25 with a double, triple, and four RBIs. She is batting .313 on the season with seven extra-base hits. LeClair has added five outfield assists on the season, including three in the same game against Utah on April 13.
AROUND THE DIAMOND
• Kayla Lissy is tied for second in the Pac-12 with four triples, and she is sixth with 14 stolen bases. She is one of three players in the Pac-12 to have at least 14 steals without being caught.
• Alesia Denby leads the team with nine home runs and 28 RBIs. She ranks eighth in the Pac-12 with 18 extra-base hits.
• Sara Kinch is having her best season at the plate with a .272 batting average and five home runs. Her 21 RBIs are tied for second on the team, and she has hit two grand slams.
• Deborah Jones leads the team with 17 starts on the season, including 11 in conference play. Her 67 strikeouts lead the club and rank 11th in the Pac-12.
WALKING WOUNDED
Injuries have taken a toll on the Sun Devils, with season-ending injuries to pitchers Kenzie Brown and Kylee Magee affecting the rotation and Yannixa Acuña and Maddie Pomykalski not being options in the lineup. ASU players have lost a combined 143 games to injury this season.