Cats, Lopes to be Featured in Fox Sports Arizona's Baseball/Softball Day in Arizona

#8 ARIZONA at GRAND CANYON
APRIL 12-13 • PHOENIX, ARIZ. (GCU SOFTBALL STADIUM)

Game Notes: #8/6 Arizona Wildcats (34-7) • Grand Canyon Lopes (26-16)

THE GAMES (Times MST)
40 | Friday, April 12 |

0 | Recap | Box Score
41 | Friday, April 12 |

0 (8 inn.)| Recap | Box Score
42 | Saturday, April 12 (1 p.m.) |

| Fox Sports Arizona (Baseball Day in Arizona) | Live Stats | Twitter Updates

WEEKLY NOTES

THIS WEEK: After 14 straight wins since the start of conference play, the Wildcats have arrived at their Pac-12 bye week and, for the first time ever, will head to Grand Canyon for a three-game series. The Cats and the Lopes have met seven times prior, all at Hillenbrand Stadium, with the Wildcats winning all seven, most recently a three-game sweep last season. Arizona and Grand Canyon will meet in a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 5 p.m. before finishing the series on Saturday at 1 p.m. MST. Saturday's game will be televised by Fox Sports Arizona for their Baseball/Softball Day which will feature 24 straight hours of baseball/softball on the network.

LEADING OFF

Eighth-ranked Arizona rides a 14-game winning streak into its Pac-12 bye week, its longest winning streak since winning 26 in-a-row in 2017. Included in the 14-game winning streak are four Pac-12 sweeps, giving the Cats their third best start in UA's conference history, joining 2017 (13-0) and 1994 (23-0). During Arizona's 14-game winning streak, Arizona is outscoring its opponents 136-13.
Arizona went 5-0 last week vs. UTEP and Utah, outscoring its opposition 70-5 in the five games, including a school-record 48 runs in the sweep of the Utes in Salt Lake City.
The Wildcats lead the country in home runs (77), already surpassing their 2018 total of 75 that was sixth most in the country. The 77 home runs exceed the number of total runs that UA's pitchers have allowed all season (73).
Junior shortstop Jessie Harper, after hitting four home runs last week, leads the country with a career-most 21 home runs. She is 10th in UA history with 58 for her career, two away from becoming the fourth Wildcat in school history to hit her 60th career home run during her junior year (the other three are all in the top 6 in NCAA history in career home runs).
Arizona's offense is top 10 in the NCAA in home runs per game (3rd - 1.97), slugging percentage (3rd - .638), batting average (6th - .344), scoring (6th - 7.46) on-base percentage (.427).
Arizona's pitching staff is seventh in the country in both ERA (1.57) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.22).
In 12 games, the Wildcats have outscored their Pac-12 opponents 114-11 and have a Pac-12-best 0.71 ERA in league games. Arizona's 114 runs scored already eclipse its 2018 24-game total of 93 runs scored.
Dating back to last season, Arizona has won seven consecutive Pac-12 series after its four sweeps to open conference play this season.
Arizona has won 28 of its last 31 games, with its only three losses in that span coming to the current No. 2 (Oklahoma) and No. 3 (Florida State) ranked teams in the country by a combined four runs.
The Wildcats are seventh in this week's NCAA RPI, a metric heavily relied on for NCAA Tournament seeding. UA is No. 8 in the NFCA Top 25.
Through 39 games, Arizona has played 13 games against ranked opponents and has an 8-5 record in those games. All five losses are to top-six opponents. Despite the 1-5 record, in six games vs. (current rankings) No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Florida State, No. 5 Alabama and No. 6 Florida, UA has been outscored by just two runs (21-23) and has 11 more hits (40-29).
There is only one team in the country that has more than two players with double digit home runs. It's Arizona with four players with 10-or-more homers: Jessie Harper (21), Dejah Mulipola (16), Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza (13) and Malia Martinez (10). UA's junior class (5 players) have combined for 64 home runs. That total would rank seventh in the country if they were their own team.
Arizona's offense has been heating up with the weather. Since the calendar turned to March (last 24 games), Arizona has averaged 8.79 runs/game and is hitting 2.17 home runs per game after scoring 5.33 runs and hitting 1.67 homers per game in February (15 games).
Arizona head coach Mike Candrea enters the weekend three wins shy of Michigan's Carol Hutchins for the most career wins in NCAA softball history. Candrea, who is in his 32nd year of coaching at Arizona, has won 1,595 wins while Hutchins has 1,598 over 36 seasons of coaching. Last weekend, Candrea moved into fifth all-time in NCAA Division I victories among all sports.

NOTES ON THE LOPES (26-14)

Grand Canyon enters the weekend having swept Cal State Bakersfield last weekend and has won 14 of its last 15 overall.
Earlier this season, GCU became the first team to defeat then top-ranked Florida State in the first game of March 6 doubleheader. Later, the Lopes took on then No. 3 Oklahoma in Norman and fell just 1-0.
GCU hits .293 as a team, led by the Smith sisters, Shea (.400) and Sierra (.328).
The four-headed pitching staff carries a 2.26 ERA, led by Yessie Morrison (8-4, 1.89 ERA).

ARIZONA vs. GRAND CANYON

Arizona is 7-0 all-time against the Lopes, with all seven games coming at Hillenbrand Stadium.
Arizona has outscored Grand Canyon 47-2 in the seven games with six of the wins coming via the shutout.
Arizona swept GCU last year in a three-game series at Hillenbrand and did not allow a run in the three games.

LAST WEEK
Arizona Has Record-Setting Sweep at Utah

Arizona scored a school-record 48 runs in a three-game sweep in Salt Lake City, outscoring the Utes 48-3 in the three games.
Arizona's offense scored 22 in game 2, bookended by a pair of 13-run outputs in games 1 and 3.
In game 2, Arizona tied a school record for runs in a road conference game (22) and set a school record for largest margin of victory on the road (21).
The Cats hit .471 in the series, scattering 40 hits across the three games.
Jessie Harper led the Wildcat offense with a .700 average (7-for-10), two doubles, two homers and six RBI in the series. She reached in each of her final nine plate appearances, including going 7-for-7 at the plate.
Malia Martinez hit .636 with a team-most 12 RBI, part of her 18 RBI during the week (including six vs. UTEP), which was good enough to be named the College Sports Madness National Player of the Week.

Arizona Takes Two from UTEP

Arizona swept Wednesday's doubleheader with UTEP, defeating the Miners 17-1 (5 inn.) and 5-1 at Hillenbrand Stadium.
Both Jessie Harper and Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza hit two home runs in the doubleheader.
The two Harper homers tied the junior's career high in home runs and tied for the NCAA lead (19).
UA's two freshmen pitchers earned the victories in the doubleheader; Marissa Schuld earned her second career win in game 1, not allowing an earned run over four innings, while Vanessa Foreman picked up her first career win in game 2 (4.0 IP, 1 R, 6 H, 2 K).
In game 1, UA set season-high marks in runs (17) and hits (16) while cruising to a 17-1 win. Malia Martinez (6 RBI), Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza (5 RBI) and Jessie Harper (4 RBI) all homered and drove in 15 of UA's 17 runs in the game. All six of Martinez's RBI came during a 13-run second inning; she set a career-high in RBI in that inning alone.
In game 2, Arizona used Harper and Palomino-Cardoza's second homers of the doubleheader and Hillary Edior's first RBI double of 2019, to defeat UTEP, 5-1.

RANKINGS

This week, Arizona moved up to eighth in NFCA Top 25 (from ninth), sixth in the USA Softball Top 25 (from eighth) and third in the Softball America Top 25 (from fifth).
UA is seventh in this week's NCAA RPI, down from eighth last week.
The Wildcats started the season ranked seventh in the NFCA Top 25 and Softball America Top 25 and sixth in the USA Softball Top 25.
Arizona is one of four Pac-12 teams in the top 25.

HARPER'S HEROICS

Jessie Harper leads the country with 21 home runs, one more than second-place Alyssa DiCarlo of Georgia (20). She is trying to become the firt Wildcat since Stacie Chambers in 2009 (31 homers) to lead the country in home runs. Overall, nine Wildcats haved led the country in homers.
The junior's career-most 21 home runs give her 58 for her career, already 10th most in Arizona history. She is trying to join Katiyana Mauga (67 home runs after junior year), Stacie Chambers (67) and Leah Braatz (60) as the only three players in UA history to have hit their 60th career homer during their junior seasons. Mauga (2nd), Chambers (4th) and Braatz (t5th) are all in the top six in NCAA history in career homers.
Harper's 58 home runs have come in 159 career games. Katiyana Mauga is the fastest Wildcat to 60 homers (157 games) followed by Stacie Chambers (166 games).
Harper is nearing her career-high in RBI with five weeks to go in the regular season. She leads the Pac-12 and is sixth nationally (second among all Power 5 players) with 53 RBI. That's more than her 59-game total in 2018 (51) and is nearing her 2017 total when she was a first-team All-American (56). Harper has 160 career RBI.
Harper is first in the Pac-12 and fifth nationally with a .968 slugging percentage. That figure would curretnly be third in UA history. She is slugging .778 for her career, currently fifth highest in Arizona history.
After hitting .333 (freshman) and .340 (sophomore) her first two seasons, Harper is batting .387 this season, second highest on the team and ninth highest in the Pac-12. Since the calendar turned to March (24 games), Harper is hitting .421 with 15 homers.
Harper has four multi-homer games this season and 12 in her career.
Arizona is 44-2 in her career when Harper homers and 64-6 in her career when she records an extra-base hit.

ONE LAST RIDE FOR TAYLOR MCQUILLIN

Taylor McQuillin has been excellent in her senior season. She is 14-5 with a career-low 1.36 ERA and has fanned 147 batters (against 26 walks) in 118.1 innings pitched.
McQuillin, who led the NCAA with 15 shutouts in 2018, leads the Pac-12 and is tied for fourth nationally with eight shutouts this season.
The senior ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in ERA (1.36), strikeouts (147) and opponent batting average (.162).
McQuillin has six victories (inlcuing four shutouts) this season vs. ranked teams (all complete games). McQuillin beat #19 Michigan (7.0 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 7 K), #20 Oklahoma State (7.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 10 K), #23 Minnesota (7.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 10 K), #19 James Madison (8.0 IP, 6 R, 5 8 H, 7 K) and two wins vs. #17 Arizona State (5.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 8 K) and (7.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 7 K).
McQuillin has stepped up in a huge way during Pac-12 play. She is 7-0 in league games with a 0.56 ERA and has struck out 44 batters while walking just four. Among her six Pac-12 starts, four of them have two-hit shutouts.
In each of her last four outings (all complete-games, three of them shutouts), McQuillin has allowed just two hits.
McQuillin has moved into the Arizona career top-10 in career wins (10th - 70), strikeouts (8th - 730), innings pitched (10th - 608.2).

RAKIN' REYNA

Reyna Carranco is tied for fifth in the country (tied for second among Power 5 players) in hits this season with 57 and 10th in the country with a .460 batting average.
Carranco's .460 batting average is the highest by an Arizona hitter 39 games into a season since Brittany Lastrapes in 2011 (.484).
Carranco just saw her 24-game reached-base streak end on Sunday at Utah, which included a 15-game hitting streak. Both of those are the longest by a Wildcat this season and longest since Hallie Wilson's 19-game hitting streak/29 game reached-base streak in 2015.
In the first 39 games of the season, Carranco has multiple hits in 21 of them.

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE

When it's all said and done, Arizona will play what is sure to be among the toughest schedules in the country. Arizona's schedule includes each of the top seven teams from the final 2018 NFCA Top 25 (and 11 total ranked teams), 17 games against 2018 WCWS teams, 21 2018 NCAA Tournament teams and home series vs. the defending national champions (Florida State; March 8-10) and national runners up (Washington; May 3-5).
The Wildcats will play or have already played six of top eight teams in the current NFCA Top 25. In all, UA's schedule includes 11 teams currently ranked in the top 25.
Arizona played at least one ranked team in each of the first five weeks of the season, including top-10 teams in four of them. The Wildcats are currently 8-5 vs. ranked teams this year.
Since 1994, Arizona is above .500 against ranked teams, top-10 teams and top-five competition. UA is 572-267-1 (.690) against ranked competition, 266-179 (.617) against top-10 teams and 130-126 (.536) against top-five teams.

University of Arizona Athletics