It would be easy for the No. 2 ASU softball team to look past its road series against the Utah Utes with a big series against No. 10 Cal on the horizon.
Record-wise, the Utes (19-23-1, 4-11 Pac-12) will probably be the weakest team the Sun Devils (38-5, 9-3 Pac-12) will face the rest of the season.
Last year, Utah was in for a shock when they moved from the Mountain West Conference to the Pac-12.
“It was a pretty big adjustment,” coach Clint Myers said. “Let’s face it, (the Pac-12) is the best conference in the country. You’re playing postseason teams every weekend.”
Utah endured the growing pains and went 2-22 in the conference in 2012. It’s been a little better for the Utes in 2013 with a 4-11 conference mark.
“I would say last year was pretty rough for them,” sophomore catcher Amber Freeman said. “They definitely had a wake-up call, because this is probably the best conference in the country. They’re having a better year, and it seems like they’re adjusting.”
Utah has won three of its past six conference games, which included its first Pac-12 series victory earlier this month against No. 18 UCLA.
ASU is taking the approach that it can only control its half of the game. Regardless of who the Sun Devils face, their goals remain the same.
“Who we play is a little bit irrelevant, because we approach every game the same way, whether it’s Arizona or Alabama or UCLA or Florida or any of those teams," Myers said. "Certain games get a little more hype, but what we’re expecting to do and what we’re trying to do remains constant all the time.”
The series against Utah marks only the third true road series of the year for ASU. The Sun Devils also played a neutral-site tournament on the road.
They’ve played a large amount of games at home, which included 26 in a row at home to start the season.
ASU has played 32 games at Farrington Stadium with a record of 30-2 and only 11 games away from home with a record of 8-3.
“When teams play at home they always play better,” Freeman said. "We just need to go there and play our best softball and come home with three (wins).”
Reach the reporter at Justin.Janssen@asu.edu or follow on Twitter @JJanssen11
