Ahead of a four-game series at Stanford, Arizona coach Mike Candrea said bluntly that any player “in the nine that are playing” should not have a problem with being motivated.
But what about those on the bench?
The No. 9 Wildcats (18-5, 3-2) brought all six of last year’s seniors back this spring. Of those, only second baseman Reyna Carranco has missed significant time, and her absence is due to a wrist injury sustained in late February. The other five have maintained their spots throughout notable struggles.
Jessie Harper, who crushed 10 home runs in 25 games last spring, was stuck on four homers until hitting four more in last weekend’s series against Oregon State, ending an 0-for-11 stretch at the plate.
Malia Martinez has seen her batting average drop from .440 to .258 over the last 13 games but has missed only one start.
Pitchers Mariah Lopez and Alyssa Denham have combined to start 18 of the team’s 23 games despite Lopez’s career-high 2.10 ERA and what Candrea says is Denham’s fatigue.
Finally, Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza bounced back from a five-game hitless streak to earn Pac-12 Player of the Week honors, going 8 for 11 with two home runs, a triple, two doubles and eight RBIs against Oregon State.
“This game is a roller coaster,” Palomino-Cardoza said.
Catchers Dejah Mulipola and Sharlize Palacios have also started every game, but neither have gone more than two games without a hit.
Freshman first baseman Carly Scupin and outfielder Janelle Meoño also start, and there is an ongoing battle between Isabella Dayton and Hannah Martinez, who is mired in a 1-for-16 slump, for the final spot.
Carranco’s absence has opened the door to Allie Skaggs and Hannah Bowen, who has also made four starts in the circle, but it remains to be seen if that competition will continue when Carranco, who resumed throwing last week, returns.
“I’m hoping she can get back and find that pace she needs very quickly,” Candrea said. “But I commend the kids that have filled in for her.”
That leaves eight Wildcats trying to find a role. None have handled that better than freshman first baseman Giulia Koutsoyanopulos.
“Any time she gets in, she’s going to give everything she has because she knows this is her shot,” Skaggs said.
“I just admire her so much, because she competes like she’s the starter and has been the starter for years.”
Scupin’s recent offensive struggles — she has zero home runs since hitting five in her first eight games, and has just two hits in her last 20 at bats — have led to Koutsoyanopulos making three-straight appearances, including going 2 for 3 in her only start.
Still, Candrea expects that kind of attitude and production from all his players when they get their chance.
“We’re going to use our people in the best way to help us win,” Candrea said.
“The one thing I can say about this team, overall, is that it’s full of very unselfish people, who have stayed up and given us everything we need. Kids with great attitudes, you’re almost looking for opportunities for them.”
The series with Stanford (22-4, 3-0) includes games at 6 p.m. Thursday, a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. Friday and a noon game on Saturday. The second game of the doubleheader will count as a nonconference game, per pandemic-era Pac-12 rules.
