STARKVILLE, MS – Returning to action following their game one win, Arizona Softball (38-20, 8-16) responded with another big win, advancing to their 25th College World Series.
Arizona Softball did not have a particularly great regular season; however, at this point of the season, that does not seem to matter too much as there are not many teams that are playing better than the Wildcats are right now.
Walking through their regional that featured matchups with Illinois and Missouri, the Wildcats had an even bigger challenge as they entered this weekend against host Mississippi State.
Battling in game one, luckily, the Wildcats were able to come away with the big win, delivering on some timely hits, while Hanah Bowen channeled her inner Taryne Mowatt to help deliver the complete game win.
Well, game two was the complete antithesis of that! Despite a slow start by the Wildcats, Arizona’s offense exploded later in the game, plating seven runs in the fourth to bust this one wide open and fuel their dominant win.
Now, as good as Arizona’s offense was, Devyn Netz was even more impressive on the mound for the Cats, turning in a masterful performance. She would have to battle in the second inning, where Mississippi State picked up a run, but she was largely unscathed, surrendering just one run on five hits.
Even though Arizona Softball fell behind 1-0 early on, the Wildcats bounced back in a big way to come away with the 7-1 win!
It was a battle early on as both teams struggled to find offense in the first inning, but after a few timely hits by the Bulldogs in the second inning, Mississippi State would break the 0-0 tie with an RBI single.
Luckily for us, that lead wouldn’t last for long as the Wildcats’ bats would come alive in the fourth inning, and boy would Arizona respond in a big way!
Trailing 1-0, Carlie Scupin started the scoring barrage for the Wildcats when she blasted a home run off a 3-2 pitch to right field to score Amber Toven.
Thankfully, the scoring wouldn’t stop there! Thanks to some errors by the Bulldogs, the Wildcats were able to stay aggressive and capitalize in a big way, plating five more runs in the inning to expand their lead to 7-1.
Leading comfortably, Arizona pitcher Devyn Netz would get all that run support that would need as she dominated Mississippi State, holding the offense at bay to secure the game two win!
Netz would pick up the complete-game win, improving her record to 15-7, while the Wildcats advance to their 25th College World Series appearance.
Listen to head coach Caitlin Lowe following the team’s impressive win!
We're not crying, you're crying 😭#RoadToWCWS x @ArizonaSoftball pic.twitter.com/D0Yx3QNIaV
— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball) May 28, 2022
Where does Arizona Softball go from here?
With the win, Arizona improves to 38-20 (8-16) on the year and returns to action next at the College World Series. We will have to wait and see who the Wildcats will be matched up with!