Arizona softball had to wait to get on the field when earlier games ran long. When the Wildcats (18-2) finally got to play, they made short work of both opponents on their first day of the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, Calif.
Arizona’s game against Weber State didn’t start on time because of Weber State’s first game. The Wildcats from the state of Utah battled No. 23 San Diego State for nine innings before walking away with the 7-6 upset. They didn’t have as much success against No. 12 Arizona, which defeated the upstarts 13-3 in five innings.
The nightcap was against the host Cal State Fullerton Titans. Arizona had already defeated them twice in Tucson during the second week of the season. It was more of the same with the Wildcats winning 12-1 in five innings.
The two victories gave Arizona nine run-rule victories this season. Two of the nine came against ranked teams.
WSU had to be riding high after securing their first ranked win of the season. Sometimes that can carry over into the next game. That wasn’t the case this time.
Arizona scored in every inning of the game. The UA Wildcats jumped out to a four-run lead in the top of the first. They added five more in the second, one in the third, two in the fourth, and one more in the fifth.
Arizona did it without hitting a home run. The team ended with 15 hits, six walks, and one hit batter. It was gifted extra outs via three WSU errors.
The Wildcats’ only extra-base hits were two doubles and two triples. Right fielder Paige Dimler got one of each to continue her hot hitting. She went 4 for 4 against WSU, scoring two runs and knocking in two more.
The senior has a hit in 13 of the 14 games she has started since the injury to Dakota Kennedy. At the end of the game, her average was up to .528. It sat at .500 by the end of the day.
Kaiah Altmeyer, Regan Shockey, Miranda Stoddard, Jenna Sniffen, and Tayler Biehl also had multiple hits against Weber State.
Redshirt freshman Ryan Maddox got the start. She had trouble with walks and hit batters in the early going, but WSU had a hard time getting hits off her. In the second inning, she hit the leadoff batter and gave up a one-out walk but struck out the other three batters she faced.
Maddox finally ran into trouble in the fifth inning. A groundout and a strikeout bookended a single. She then hit a batter to put two on with two outs. A double scored two and a single tacked on another run. Another single put two runners on once again.
Sophomore Brooke Mannon came in to get the last out. She got the strikeout to end the game.
Maddox improved to 2-0 on the season. She pitched 4.2 innings, giving up three earned runs on six hits, three walks, and two hit batters. She struck out six.
Fullerton is not a pushover by any means. The Titans’ 12-7 record includes eight games against teams that are currently ranked. Three are in the top 10 of the NFCA poll. They defeated No. 23 SDSU early in the season and No. 5 LSU on Thursday. They also lost by just four runs to No. 4 UCLA and in one of the games against Arizona in Tucson.
This game wasn’t like that 5-1 loss in Tucson. It was much more like the five-inning 10-1 loss that preceded it.
Stoddard got the start in the circle. She had a rough go of things at Loyola Marymount on Wednesday. The Wildcats had to battle against the Lions to salvage a comeback win. She was on point against CSF.
Stoddard pitched her first complete game of the season, albeit in a game shortened by the run rule. She threw five innings, allowing one earned run on four hits. She struck out two without issuing a walk.
The Wildcats’ offense took a little longer to get going in the late game. Once it started to rain, it really poured.
Arizona loaded the bases with one out on two walks and a hit batter in the top of the first. Altmeyer attempted to get the first run of the game on a passed ball. Fullerton threw her out at home for the second out of the inning. A popup ended the threat.
The second inning was an entirely different story. Arizona sent 14 batters to the plate. The Wildcats scored nine runs on seven hits, two walks, and one error.
Dimler, Sniffen, and Biehl reached on two singles and a walk. That brought up Logan Cole with the bases loaded and no outs. She knocked in the first two runs with a single.
Altmeyer followed with a double that scored two more. She was able to move to third on the throw. That set up the fifth run.
Shockey not only reached on an error but got to second. That allowed Altmeyer to cross the plate. It was 5-0 with a runner on and there were still no outs.
When Sydney Stewart followed Shockey with a single and both moved into scoring position on the throw, it was time for a Fullerton pitching change. It just didn’t solve the problem.
Devyn Netz had the next RBI single to make it 6-0. Stoddard’s walk loaded the bases with no outs once again.
All nine of Arizona’s hitters had come to the plate and reached base safely. Dimler stepped in for the second time in the inning. The Titans were finally able to record the first out of the second inning.
Dimler’s groundout wasn’t harmless, though. It pushed Arizona’s seventh run across the plate.
The final two runs of the inning scored on Sniffen’s one-out double.
The Titans got one run back in the bottom of the inning. That’s all they would get off Stoddard.
Arizona scored another run on a hit and an error in the third. Two more scored in the fourth on three hits.
After Netz reached base on a walk to start the fifth, head coach Caitlin Lowe allowed several of her reserves to pinch hit. Arizona didn’t tack on any more runs, but it didn’t need to. It just needed three outs.
Stoddard gave up a leadoff single. It was one of two hits she gave up in the final inning. Both hitters were still standing on the base when the final out was recorded.
Arizona was supposed to start its game against the Titans at 7:30 p.m. PST. That would typically mean the Wildcats were off the field by 9 p.m. With earlier games running long, they didn’t get off the field until approximately 10:15 p.m. PST. That’s after 11 p.m. in Tucson.
It didn’t matter on Friday. Whether it matters on Saturday is to be determined. The Wildcats are scheduled to play Notre Dame at 11:30 a.m. PST. They turn around and play No. 4 UCLA at 2 p.m. PST.
Lead photo courtesy of Arizona Athletics