TUCSON, Ariz. – Allie Skaggs' fifth-inning grand slam pushed Arizona (29-24) to a walk-off 13-4 run-rule victory over Arizona State in the opening game of the first-ever Pac-12 Conference Softball Tournament at Rita Hillenbrand Stadium on the University of Arizona campus.
The Wildcats move on after the play-in action to play top-seed UCLA at 4 p.m. Thursday in the first round of the tournament. ASU concluded its season at 22-26 overall.
The game was even for most of the action, but winning pitcher Devin Netz (16-15) retired the side in the top of the fifth – the inning in which opponents had scored 48 of their 218 total runs this year. She held the Devils scoreless in the last four innings.
Kylee Magee took the loss for ASU and finished with a 3-5 record.
ASU centerfielder Jazmine Hill punctuated ASU's 4-0 first inning with a two-out grand slam home run to left after Netz loaded the bases with a walk, hit batter and a two-out single. It was Hill's seventh home run of the year.
UA had a pair of hits in the bottom of the frame, but
Dakota Kennedy was caught trying to steal second and ASU's Magee got a force out to thwart any rally.
UA took advantage of three walks to knot the score in the second. Magee gave up a single and a pair of walks to open the frame. She struck out
Kaiah Altmeyer and got an RBI grounder from
Logan Cole but reloaded the bases with a third walk to Kennedy, and
Carlie Scupin followed with a three-run double to left-center.
ASU threatened with three hits in the fourth, but after the third – a single to right by Yannira Acuna – UA fielder
Tayler Biehl cut down runner Savannah Price at the plate trying to score from second.
Scupin collected a fourth RBI in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out double to left-center to give UA a 5-4 lead. Altmeyer led off with a walk and was sacrificed to second by
Logan Cole. Altmeyer was thrown out at third trying to move up on a pitch in the dirt, Magee got a strikeout but Scupin followed with her liner in the gap.
The big fifth for the Cats featured the grand slam by Skaggs, but also was helped by three hit batters and two wild pitches. And runners
Allie Skaggs and pinch runner
Paige Dimler were thrown out at home on slow infield rollers.
Olivia DiNardo and Netz picked up HBP RBI with Scupin singling in her fifth run.
The tournament continues Thursday with Utah-California at 10 a.m., Washington-Oregon State at 12:30 p.m., the Arizona-UCLA tilt at 4 p.m. and Stanford-Oregon at 6:30 p.m.
