Oregon State Hosts No 10 Arizona State for Senior Weekend - Oregon State University Athletics
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Why is Arizona softball struggling against ranked teams?
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Photo by Ryan Kelapire
Arizona softball hasn’t lived up to expectations this season, currently sitting at fourth in the Pac-12 despite being picked to finish second.
The Wildcats have fallen outside of the Top 10 in some polls and don’t have the look of an elite team. They are 2-8 against ranked opponents, an alarming stat with the postseason only a month away.
Why has Arizona struggled against quality teams? Here’s a look at some of the problems.
Clutch hits have been hard to come by
Despite having one of the most decorated lineups in the country, the Wildcats only have 11 hits in 70 at-bats with runners in scoring position against ranked teams. That’s a .157 average for a team that is hitting .323 for the season.
Arizona’s offense is locked in and loaded for Top 15 Territorial Cup Series against the Sun Devils
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Brady Vernon
To say Arizona softball has dominated the Territorial Cup Series with Arizona State lately might be an understatement. The Sun Devils haven’t won a series against their in-state rivals since 2015 and the Wildcats swept the most recent meeting in 2019 without allowing a single run across three games.
Following the nine-game road trip that saw Arizona struggle against UCF, Florida State and Washington pitching, the bats from Tucson are hot again.
No Easy Out One Through Nine
Anyone that follows softball knows about the Wildcats’ core that includes Olympian Dejah Mulipola, potential future all-time home run queen Jessie Harper and multi-time All-American Alyssa Palomino. Muliapola sits second in the Pac-12 for home runs (13) and RBI (40) behind Arizona State’s Maddi Hackbarth. Harper took some time to regain her power stroke, but has hit five h
Stanford brings underrated pitching duo, speedy offense into series with Arizona State softball
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Courtesy of Stanford Athletics
Stanford (22-8, 3-3 Pac-12) comes into Tempe for its third conference series of the season. The Cardinal have swept Utah and been swept by Arizona thus far. Jessica Allister’s team has flown under the radar again because of an underrated pitching duo and an offense built on speed.
The Pitching Duo
Arizona State’s bat aren’t facing another elite pitcher this upcoming weekend. However, Alana Vawter and Regan Krause have been solid for Stanford this season. Similar to the Sun Devils’ Lindsay Lopez and Allison Royalty, Vawter, a sophomore, and Krause, a freshman, are facing the Pac-12 for the first time.
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