The Wildcats battle for state supremacy this week at No. 24 GCU and ASU
Softball in the state of Arizona is on an upward trajectory. The 10th-ranked Arizona Wildcats will find out just how steep that trajectory is when they visit No. 24 Grand Canyon and an Arizona State team that is receiving votes in the polls.
“I think it’s going to be a really good test for us all around,” said Arizona head coach Caitlin Lowe. “I think both teams have been playing good softball throughout the year and well-balanced lineups, and we’ve been deep diving today and yesterday into their scouting. So, it’s going to be a good challenge all the way around, and very important for us to show up on all three sides.”
The Wildcats will go in with one of the deepest teams they have had in years. In fact, the depth means there are players with great stats sitting on the bench. There simply isn’t anywhere for them to play.
Much of the “problem” in both the circle and the batting lineup is created by the skills of Devyn Netz and reigning Big 12 Player of the Week Miranda Stoddard. When one of the pair pitches, the other typically plays first base or designated player. That means players with terrific numbers get squeezed out of at-bats.
“It’s so unique in this game these days,” Lowe said. “I think they both have really good strengths…The combination of being able to use them makes it awesome. When they’re both hitting, it makes it really easy, because then we can move them in and out of the lineup. I think the biggest thing is making sure they both stay at the top of their game and their strongest self because we want to make sure that they’re ready throughout conference and into the postseason, and we want to make sure that they feel great. So that’s important to us. And I think they’ve bought into the competitive version of that and how that works, and I’ve just been really pleased to see their bond and how that’s grown.”
Paige Dimler is a prime example of the type of player getting squeezed out. The senior outfielder stepped into the starting lineup when Dakota Kennedy was out with a broken hand. Dimler took over right field while Kaiah Altmeyer moved to left.
The pair of outfielders are currently third and fourth on the outfield depth chart, meaning one is relegated to the bench. Dimler leads the Big 12 with a .469 batting average, but Altmeyer’s higher on-base and slugging percentages, ability to drive in runs, and better defensive range mean she is the one on the field and in the lineup. She also isn’t far behind Dimler at second in the Big 12 with a .437 average.
There could be shifts to the lineup like taking either shortstop or second base out of the batting order. Those two positions have tended to have lower offensive stats this season. That means taking out regular starters, though, which isn’t always the best for a team. It also ignores the fact that shortstop Tayler Biehl, who has the lowest average of Arizona’s starters, has raised her average dramatically over the last 13 games. She’s come away with at least one hit in 11 of the 13 games since she bottomed out with a .147 average in late February.
It’s a difficult issue to navigate, but Lowe said there’s been no selfishness from Dimler. As a senior who played a lot as a freshman but started losing playing time her sophomore season, being a team player has been Dimler’s nature during her entire Wildcat career.
“The coolest thing is how her and Kai feed off each other,” Lowe said. “Honestly, the whole outfield, we have a very talented outfield. I mean, Zaedi Tagalog, I call her my queen all the time, because she comes to practice every day, working her tail off. She’s literally standing right behind me, ready to pinch run. Before I even ask for her to pinch around, I turn and she’s there, and she’s so plugged in. And that’s special in a group, and it elevates the entire outfield, whether she steps onto the field or not.”
It’s tough to complain when there are hitters like Netz and Stoddard who can also pitch, anyway. Stoddard has been the Big 12 Player of the Week twice and Netz has been Pitcher of the Week once. Stoddard is tied with Netz for the team lead with nine home runs each. She’s also tied with Dimler for triples.
“The way she stepped into this year was just, I mean, I’m sure refreshing for her too, to have that year under her belt of getting back in the shape that she wanted to be in for her final season,” Lowe said. “And felt just what that feeling was like to play against top teams and then just want to be better. And she came back a different person, quite frankly. And I think on the mound, she’s just been awesome for us. She just commands the zone, does it with confidence, provides that sense of just the pace we want to set for a game and the tone we want to set for a game. She’s very good at that. Offensively, it’s been awesome. I think she comes in and she’s afraid of nobody, and has a very good head on her shoulders as far as playing the game. So she can anticipate pitches she might get or counts she might be in a good position to do some damage, and it’s been just really a sense of leadership and calmness at the top.”
Netz ranks fifth in the country with a 4.06 WAR according to Synergy. Two of those above her—Nebraska’s Jordy Bahl and Texas Tech’s NiJaree Canady—are also pitchers who hit and play the infield.
Netz has a 26.48 oRAR (offensive runs above replacement), meaning she is estimated to contribute over 26 more runs than an average bench player. Her oWAR (offensive wins above replacement) is 2.23. She saves 3.28 runs per game as a defensive player and has a 0.28 dWAR (defensive wins above replacement), well out-ranking both Bahl and Cannady in defensive stats. The areas where the other two top-hitting pitchers considerably outdo Netz are pRAR (pitching runs above replacement) and pWAR (pitching wins above replacement).
“It’s a crazy problem,” Lowe said. “Honestly, it’s the most amazing problem to have, and it’s tough because Paige has great numbers, (Emily) Schepp has done damage against good teams. I mean, Anyssa (Wild) came in and was a hero for us against Utah State, and has done nothing but get better every single day. I can keep going down the line honestly…It’s been tricky, and at the same time, it’s so great because whatever matchup we come against, we really, truly feel like…we can put our best foot forward with somebody. And not only that, but they’ve been in support of each other, and I think that’s really rare to see on a competitive team where you are doing well because it’s hard to take people out of the lineup with numbers like they are. And at the same time, we have team players that are bought into the process, and they also understand what it means when Miranda and Dev are in a game and they’re sharing the ball on the mound. So it takes an overarching perspective on the game to to have a team like that.”
It’s not just about Netz and Stoddard and their impact on other hitters. As redshirt freshman Ryan Maddox gets closer to full health, getting enough innings for all eight pitchers is also challenging.
Maddox injured her foot just before her true freshman season. She underwent surgery and is still rehabbing.
“I’ve kind of finished the hard part of rehab,” Maddox said. “There’s still kind of little things I have to do, maybe, like just three times a week now, instead of every day. But I’m feeling pretty good.”
Maddox sat out last year and still doesn’t think she’s at 100 percent.
“I think I’m about 85, 90,” Maddox said. “I think there’s still a little more in the tank I can get out and kind of build some more strength, and just a few things I have to work on in the bullpen coming back.”
She’s getting closer, though. Maddox has two starts this season, including making her Big 12 debut against Utah last weekend. It didn’t go as well as she wanted, but she’s happy just to be back in the circle. While Lowe said after the game that she thought the zone was a bit tight for both teams, Maddox didn’t think it played a part in her performance.
“I do kind of mix a lot,” Maddox said. “I have several different pitches to try to keep the hitters off balance. Since I don’t throw as hard, I need to mix very well when facing batters. But I think it was just overall a kind of an off day. The tight zone shouldn’t mean anything to me…I’ll learn from that, and kind of take that and work in the bullpen this week for next weekend.”
Adding Maddox to the starting and long relief mix, along with Netz, Stoddard, and Saya Swain, limits the number of innings available for the other four pitchers in the bullpen. Aissa Silva has primarily been a short-relief pitcher but has gotten a few longer appearances.
Silva is still trying to settle into that relief role, but she is the Wildcats’ top pitcher in some important metrics. She leads Arizona in strike percentage at 70.9 according to Synergy. That’s tied for ninth in the country. Just behind her is Stoddard, ranked 11th with a 70.8 percent strike percentage.
Sophomores Brooke Mannon and Sydney Somerndike, along with freshman Sarah Wright, are having a more difficult time getting onto the field. Lowe specifically mentioned finding innings for Mannon.
“I truly believe everyone down the stretch is going to be really important to have the collective unit,” Lowe said. “And you guys know, once the postseason hits, how many games we play against really good opponents that are going to make adjustments.”
However the coaching staff decides to set the lineup card this weekend, the team has its work cut out for it. The human pollsters think GCU is one of the top programs in the country and ASU is knocking at the door.
RPI has the Lopes at No. 40 and ASU at No. 26, which is more important for Arizona if the Wildcats hope to host the postseason this year. The team dropped out of the top 10 in RPI last week despite sweeping Utah. Both Utah’s poor RPI and the play of past opponents like Cal State Fullerton hurt Arizona despite going 5-2 against top 25 RPI teams so far this year. With seven of the top 10 teams sitting in the SEC and no top 10 teams from the Big 12, getting top 50 wins (and avoiding losses) is critical.
Then, there’s the pitching the Wildcats must be ready to face.
ASU’s Makenzie Brown is having a terrific year. She’s currently one of the top pitchers in the Big 12. Synergy ranks her second in the league in pRAR at 33.40. In comparison, Canady is first in the Big 12 and third in the country at 35.60. Netz is Arizona’s top pitcher in pRAR at 18.40. That ranks 65th in the country.
On the other hand, Arizona appears to have the better overall team. Brown ranks 31st in the country in overall WAR. She’s the only Sun Devil in the top 40. That’s behind Netz (5th), Stoddard (27th), and Altmeyer (28th). Sydney Stewart rounds out the Wildcats in the top 40 at No. 34.
Brown isn’t the only one doing good things in the circle for the Sun Devils despite the lack of ASU players at the top of the WAR rankings. Meika Lauppe ranks 18th in the country with a 69.8 percent strike percentage.
It will be on the Arizona offense to show that it can defeat good pitching, much like it did against a top 10 UCLA team earlier in the season.
Lead photo by Catherine Regan / Arizona Athletics