TEMPE, Ariz. – Stanford softball pulled within two runs in a seventh-inning rally, but it fell 4-2 to 13th-ranked Arizona State, Sunday at Farrington Stadium.
Entering the final frame trailing 4-0, the Cardinal (23-11, 4-5 Pac-12) got a leadoff double from Eleni Spirakis down the left field line to kickstart the rally. Spirakis advanced to third on a groundout from Aly Kaneshiro, and she ended the day 2-for-3 with a run.
Emily Young homered to left field in the next at-bat to make it a 4-2 game with one out in the inning. However, the next two Stanford batters would be retired to end the comeback bid in the rubber match of the series.
Arizona State (25-10, 6-6 Pac-12) hit three solo home runs in the Cardinal defeat.
Stanford used three pitchers on the day, with Nikki Bauer, Gabi Peters and Regan Krause all seeing time in the circle. The trio combined for four strikeouts, while holding the Sun Devils to go 1-for-10 with runners on.
Bauer was credited with the loss after giving up a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first.
A rivalry weekend is next on the docket for Stanford, with California traveling across the bay next weekend. The four game series will run April 16-18, with every game being televised on the Pac-12 Network.