The evening started slowly but things just got more exciting as it unfolded. Arizona got two wins against New Mexico State then capped off the night with the presentation of a golden ticket to the Athletes Unlimited Softball League inaugural college draft for senior pitcher Devyn Netz.
The games couldn’t have been more different in how they unfolded, but the end result was the same in both halves of the doubleheader between the No. 12 Wildcats and the Aggies. Arizona won the first game 3-0 before cruising to a 13-0 run-rule victory in five innings later in the evening.
“We woke up a little bit in the second game and played our version of softball,” said Arizona head coach Caitlin Lowe. “I think the difference between Stew swinging the bat in that game versus the first game, just the intent behind it. They played together. They played good softball. We were moving runners, hitting runners in with sac flies, but playing good defense, just all around better, and just being able to show up that way is going to be really important for us down the stretch.”
When it was over, the team gathered on the field to sing “Bear Down, Arizona!” to the fans, as is their custom. That wasn’t the only purpose of the gathering, though. The staff had a secret. They even roped in former head coach Mike Candrea to make it happen.
“I’ve known for a week, and I was trying to keep the secret really long time, which is hard to do,” Lowe said. “And Candrea had one job, to keep the parents here, and he didn’t do his job. But luckily, they stayed around anyway.”
The score board showed a hype video for the inaugural season of the AUSL which will be held this summer. When that ended, former UCLA great Natasha Watley was introduced for a “special announcement.”
Netz became one of 12 seniors who will be drafted by one of the foundational four teams on May 3. She joined pitcher Emma Lemley (Virginia Tech), infielder Ana Gold (Duke), infielder Bri Ellis (Arkansas), outfielder Korbe Otis (Florida), and pitcher Emiley Kennedy (Texas A&M). Kennedy also received her ticket on Tuesday evening. The other six will be announced over the coming weeks.
“I’ve been her roommate for the last couple years, just like one of her good friends for a while now, and just seeing her say ever since…I met her, it was always, ‘I want to play a pro. I want to play pro,’” Biehl said. “And now this opportunity is just incredible for her, and she’s worked so hard for it. I’m so proud of her from all that she’s overcame to get to this position.”
It wasn’t just about the honor for Netz. The fact that Watley presented the honor to her was especially meaningful.
“She’s someone that is, I feel like, a really huge mentor in the sport, and she’s kind of shaped the game, and she’s influenced the game for the way it is right now, and it was really awesome receiving it from her,” Netz said. “But playing pro has always been a dream of mine. You know, if it was my way, I would never stop playing softball. Honestly, I never would hang up the cleats. But we’ll see where it goes and see where it takes me.”
That part of the evening came after just under three hours of softball. The first game was a low-scoring affair that lasted just over 90 minutes. All the scoring happened on one misguided throw in the bottom of the second inning.
A walk and a single had runners on first and second with one out for Arizona. While it wasn’t called by third base coach Lauren Lappin, Tayler Biehl was willing to give up the out to move the runners over. She didn’t have to.
“Lap didn’t tell me to sacrifice, but I just knew, just playing softball, just getting the runners over to get some runs in,” Biehl said. “But, obviously, whenever I bunt, I try to get on base. So, a little of both. Sacrifice to get them over is the main thing, but it would be nice if I got on.”
Biehl bunted and took off down the line. Perhaps feeling the pressure of the speed in Arizona’s order, NMSU pitcher Jaileen Mancha threw the ball to the left of first base. It sailed into the right-field corner, and all three runners were off to the races.
Sydney Stewart scored from third, followed by an unearned run by Jenna Sniffen from second. Biehl got the Little League home run on the error.
“When I touched first, I saw they missed it,” Biehl said. “And so then I’m just running around, and then I see that the right fielder is having a hard time getting up with it. And so then I keep running, and all I see at third base is Lap sending me. And then as I’m halfway a home, I peek over and they still have the ball. So it was cool.”
Saya Swain got her fourth start of the season. She pitched three innings, giving up one hit and one walk. She struck out two.
Netz threw the final four innings and picked up the win to improve to 18-5 on the season. She gave up one hit and struck out four.
Arizona wasn’t very productive on offense. The Wildcats had six hits and two walks, but they didn’t do much with the scattered baserunners. Both the players and the coaches felt it took a while to get used to different velocity after facing NiJaree Canady all weekend.
The NMSU pitchers were throwing between 61 and 63 miles per hour most of the evening. It will be something they need to get adapt to quickly when they get into the regional round when they will face multiple teams and varying velocities over a weekend.
“I think it’s important to to make adjustments in all facets,” Lowe said. “So, like pitcher one to pitcher two, we got to be able to jump on someone quick and be able to make those adjustments.”
The top producers were Biehl (2 of 3 with a run scored) and Dakota Kennedy (2 of 3). There were no official RBI, but Biehl was responsible for the strike of the ball that led to all three of Arizona’s runs. The only other Wildcats with hits were Miranda Stoddard (1 of 2 with a walk) and Jenna Sniffen (1 of 3 with a run scored). Stoddard’s hit came on a drag bunt.
The bats finally came alive in the second game. Arizona had more hits through the first two innings of the late game than it had in the entirety of the early game. The Wildcats ended with 15 hits, including six home runs. Stewart was responsible for three of the round-trippers.
Nine of the 12 Wildcats with at-bats in the second game got a hit. Paige Dimler and Anyssa Wild, who weren’t used as pinch-hitters in a crucial situation in the sixth inning against Texas Tech on Saturday, got their opportunities in Game 2 on Tuesday. They both came through.
Regan Shockey, Emily Schepp, Netz, and Stewart all had multi-hit games in the nightcap. Stewart and Netz each had three. In addition to Netz and Stewart, Schepp and Jenna Sniffen had home runs. Netz and Wild both had doubles, and Kaiah Altmeyer added a triple for nine extra-base hits.
Arizona scored in the first four innings. The Wildcats didn’t have to take their at-bats in the fifth.
Stoddard started a little slowly. She gave up a leadoff single to Desirae Spearman but Spearman was called out for leaving early during the at-bat of Faith Aragon. Arizona needed the call since it would have put two on with no outs when Aragon walked. Johnna Aragon then grounded into a double play to end the trouble.
It seemed to spark the Wildcats. Shockey got on with a one-out single then advanced all the way to third on a wild pitch. Netz hit a double to score Shockey, then Stewart hit the first of three home runs to put to more on the board. All three runs came with two outs.
“It’s my first game with three home runs ever in my career,” Stewart said. “So just a special moment, and I felt like we responded well after last game.”
Arizona’s defense continued to lock down. Stoddard gave up a leadoff single for the second straight inning. The defense ended the frame with a double play for the second straight inning.
Arizona used a home run to tack on more runs in the bottom of the second. Schepp singled to lead off the inning. Sniffen’s home run made it a 5-0 ball game.
Stoddard was still trying to settle down in the circle. A walk allowed the leadoff baserunner to reach for the third straight inning. A sacrifice and a single put runners on the corners with two outs, but the Aggies couldn’t come up with the timely hit with runners in scoring position.
Netz got things started in the bottom of the third with a single. That brought Stewart up again with a runner on. Stewart knocked them both in for the second time in the game. Arizona led 7-0. That finally chased the Aggies’ starting pitcher, Taryn Bennet.
Zantelle Rodriguez was charged with keeping the Wildcats from getting enough runs to activate the run rule. She got the first out, but surrendered a home run to Schepp to put the Wildcats up by eight runs.
Arizona wasn’t going to take its foot off the gas. With Kiki Escobar struggling at the plate, senior Paige Dimler came in to pinch hit. She started another rally with a single and moved up on a wild pitch. That put her in position to score when Kennedy reached on an error. Arizona led 9-0 after three innings.
Stoddard dismissed the first two batters of an inning for the first time in the top of the fourth. She played with fire by giving up a two-out triple, but the runner was still there after a groundout from Tamara Carranza ended the frame.
Arizona was relentless. Altmeyer started the home half of the fourth with a triple. Netz drove them both in with a home run.
Wild kept it going with a pinch-hit double. Biehl returned to the field to run for Wild and moved to third on yet another wild pitch. Schepp’s sacrifice fly drove in the 13th run of the game.
Stoddard and Ryan Maddox pitched a combined four-hitter. Stoddard was responsible for all four hits over the first four innings. She also walked one. The grad student picked up the win to improve her record to 10-0 and dropped her ERA to 1.83.
Maddox came in for the final inning. The freshman struck out one and only faced three batters. She lowered her ERA to 3.96.
Arizona (39-9, 14-7 Big 12) now goes to San Diego State (29-15, 13-6 MWC) to play a two-game set on Friday and Saturday. The Wildcats beat the Aztecs 11-3 in six innings at the Judi Garman Classic the first weekend of March.
The Wildcats will return to conference play the following weekend at Houston (21-19, 3-13 Big 12) then proceed to the Big 12 Tournament in Oklahoma City.