STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford made highlight worth plays defensively but dropped the series finale against Utah 7-2 Sunday at Boyd and Jill Smith Family Stadium.
The Cardinal (15-9, 1-5 Pac-12) made multiple quality stops on defense but was unable to slow the Utes (22-13, 2-7 Pac-12) offense, being outhit 11-4.
The Cardinal received defensive contributions from a variety of players, notably Hanna Winter and Kaitlin Schaberg in the infield, and Tylyn Wells and Bessie Noll in the outfield.
“We made all of the routine plays this weekend, plus some pretty spectacular ones as well,” said Stanford head coach Rachel Hanson. “Defense was the real key why we played a closer, tighter series.”
Wells led Stanford offensively with two hits, while Schaberg and Erin Ashby contributed a hit apiece. Kayla Bonstrom contributed a RBI – her ninth in the past five games.
Ashby paced the Cardinal in the series, hitting .429 (3-for-7) with four RBIs, two doubles and a walk.
Wells (3-3) got the start in the circle for Stanford and battled through 3.0 innings, allowing five runs on six hits and four walks. Kylie Sorenson came in as relief in the fourth inning and was terrific for the second consecutive day, limiting the Utes to two runs on five hits, no walks and three strikeouts in 4.0 innings.
Wells and Sorenson – who are typically Stanford’s staring leftfielder and shortstop, respectively, but are pitching due to injuries – did well to keep the Cardinal within striking distance.
“They’re doing what we’re asking of them – give us a chance, keep the ball low, hit the corners and give us a chance to make plays,” said Hanson. “They’re both doing a really excellent job of that so kudos to them for playing a role that we needed.”
Utah jumped out to an early lead, striking for two runs in the top of the first inning. The Utes manufactured a run in the top of the second inning to extend its lead to 3-0.
Utah did most of its damage in the top of the fourth inning, scoring four runs on five hits to take a 7-0 advantage. The Utes almost added an eighth run but a diving stop by Schaberg at shortstop prevented the runner from going home and Stanford was able to get out of the inning.
Bessie Noll provided the defensive highlight of the day in the following inning when she made a leaping catch at the top of the wall in right field to end the inning.
The Cardinal had trouble finding the clutch hit needed to produce runs against Utah starting pitcher Miranda Viramontes (9-6) in the early innings. Stanford had runners reach base in three of the first four innings but could not produce any runs.
The Cardinal continued to battle and broke through in the fifth inning when it loaded the bases with no outs. Bonstrom contributed the first RBI of the game and Ashby followed with a sacrifice fly to centerfield to cut the lead to 7-2. However, Stanford was unable to maintain the momentum and the next two batters were retired.
“I love the competitive spirit and fight,” said Hanson about her team’s effort in the late innings. “It says a lot about our character – the ability to perform your best regardless of the circumstances and they showcased that today.”
Sorenson did well to keep the Utes off the board in the sixth and seventh innings, and give Stanford an opportunity to close the gap. However, the Cardinal was unable to find the hits needed to make a comeback.
It will be a quick turnaround for Stanford as the team travels to Pacific on Tuesday at 6 p.m. (PT) before heading to Washington for a three-game series beginning Thursday at 5 p.m.