This article was originally published on February 24, 2023.
Arizona State (9-2) let a power surge take them to victory Friday in a 9-5 win over Iowa State (6-5). Two graduate outfielders, Yanni Acuña and Makenna Harper as well as graduate catcher Gianna Boccagno all hit home runs in the Sun Devils win.
The power barrage started when Acuña hit a leadoff home run, her fifth of the year. Harper’s bomb was a two run shot in the bottom of the third. Boccagno’s homer was a three-run shot that gave the Sun Devils the lead that they kept for the rest of the game.
“If you can’t see the ball, you can’t hit it. That’s really important for me,” Boccagno said. “That kid had a really good changeup so I had to find the ball.”
Acuña’s leadoff blast started a three-run first inning for the Sun Devils. Later in the inning, graduate third baseman Alexa Milius and Boccagno hit back-to-back RBI singles.
Freshman pitcher Kylee Magee started the game on the mound for the Sun Devils. She struggled with her control throughout her outing. She walked three straight batters in the second, but managed to get out of that jam by forcing weak contact.
“I think Kylee is a really great pitcher, she just hasn’t figured that out for herself yet,” sophomore pitcher Kenzie Brown said.
Magee wasn’t as fortunate in the third. Iowa State sophomore first baseman Angelina Allen hit a home run in the top of the third before the inning started to unravel. Magee worked long counts and gave up a couple of weak contact hits before an error by Milius led to an RBI single from senior shortstop Alesia Ranches and a two RBI double by senior left fielder Carli Spelhaug.
“Kylee is gonna be a workhorse for us, and she’s a freshman. She’s settling in,” said ASU coach Megan Bartlett. “We made an error and she lost her composure a little bit. It’s just a teaching moment.”
Fortunately for the Sun Devils, Brown stepped in and shut down the Cyclones. Along with graduate pitcher Marissa Schuld, the Sun Devils held Iowa State scoreless the rest of the game.
“Kenzie was pretty lights out for us tonight,” Bartlett said. “The kid is special.”
Brown finished her two and a third innings with only one hit allowed. Schuld also only gave up one hit in her two innings of work.
Ultimately, Boccagno’s home run was the difference in the game. Her three run shot to the opposite field made it 8-5 in the bottom of the fifth. Acuña tacked on another run in the fifth with an RBI single.
“We train them every day to have very good direction in their swing,” Bartlett said. “To work really stable through your middle, to be able to hit the ball to all fields with power is something that we test them on everyday. That is definitely by design.”
ASU will play two more games against Iowa State in a doubleheader on Saturday.
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