It would be easy to underestimate a softball team like Oregon.
The Ducks’ best pitcher is a freshman. Their two leading hitters are freshmen. It doesn’t get much younger than this team.
After a humbling sweep at the hands of No. 17 California last weekend, the ASU softball team is not underestimating the Ducks as they roll into Tempe for three games this weekend.
“Youth is not necessarily a bad thing,” ASU coach Clint Myers said. “We cannot take them lightly.” First-year head coach Mike White has coached the No. 16 Ducks into sole possession of second place in the Pac-10, with wins over
No. 1 Washington and a sweep of Cal. With a squad of young talent turning heads in the Pac-10, White’s team is asserting themselves as a serious contender in the conference.
UO freshman outfielder Samantha Pappas currently leads the Pac-10 with a .453 batting average to go with 42 RBI and 11 home runs. Along with Pappas in the outfield is freshman Allie Burger, whose .421 average is fifth in the Pac-10.
“A lot of freshmen come in with the same kind of mentality that they really have nothing to lose and everything to prove,” ASU junior catcher Kaylyn Castillo said. “That’s kind of their aggressive attitude and we can feed off that to motivate ourselves.”
The Ducks’ youth extends to the circle as well, where freshman Jessica Moore (13-4) sports the Pac-10’s second-best ERA at 1.08. Moore is backed by sophomore Sam Skillingstad (10-4, 1.87 ERA) and her 9.62 strikeouts per seven innings.
ASU’s pitching, meanwhile, has struggled as of late and currently holds the second-highest team ERA in the Pac-10 (2.84). The staff has also allowed the most home runs (41), second-most hits (277) and second-most runs (141) in the conference.
Myers said finding a consistency in the pitching of sophomore Hillary Bach will be one of the most important keys to the rest of the season. Bach is 17-4 with a 2.16 ERA, but has been surprisingly inconsistent lately. Myers, however, isn’t blaming Bach completely for the inconsistency.
“It’s kind of like the weather,” Myers said. “It’s supposed to be sunny and 75, but it’s 50 and rainy. Whose fault is that? I think we’re moving in the right direction.”
Myers said Bach has made a few adjustments since getting battered by Cal’s offense last weekend and thinks her work in practice this week will determine how she fares against UO.
In spite of Cal’s silencing of ASU’s offense in their sweep, it remains the No. 2 scoring team in the nation. Castillo, who’s hitting .314 with 34 RBI, said it will be on the offense to come out aggressive and take advantage of opportunities. When scoring first this season, ASU holds a record of 27-2.
“It’s going to take an aggressive attitude,” Castillo said. “We kind of played passive last week and let Cal come to us. We need to be fired up and go get them.”
Hoping to rebound from the Cal series and keep pace in the Pac-10, the No. 9 Sun Devils want to win the series. Myers said a well-coached team like Oregon can be tough to beat at this point in the season.
“They’re on a high right now,” Myers said. “How long it will last, we don’t know. Hopefully it will last until Friday.” The series opens at Farrington Stadium Friday at 7 p.m. and continues Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at noon.
Reach the reporter at tyler.lockman@asu.edu
