Arizona pinch-hitter Ivy Davis entered Sunday’s Wildcat Invitational game in the fifth inning with two runners on base.
On the second pitch, Davis hit a line drive down the left-field line. South Carolina-Upstate left fielder Brittany Case ran forward and dove for the catch, but fell a couple inches short.
The double was good enough to score Malia Martinez and Hillary Edior, and hand the Wildcats a 9-1 mercy-rule victory.
Arizona (21-2) has won seven straight.
“I was just really excited to get out here,” said Davis, a freshman from Huntington Beach, California. “I knew we needed those runs, and we had the runners on base, so it was a good opportunity. I’m glad we were able to capitalize on it.”
The ninth-ranked Wildcats had active bats from the get-go, scoring four runs in the first inning. Reyna Carranco’s double scored Alyssa Palomino. In the next at-bat, Jessie Harper hit a homer, making it 3-0.
Dejah Mulipola then belted a homer of her own.
UA coach Mike Candrea said the team has struggled in the first innings throughout the season, but saw the team more focused and ready in Sunday’s game.
“You look at the first inning, and we came out with a bang,” Candrea said. “And we haven’t done that in a while.”
The Wildcats added one more run in the third and two in the fourth before Davis’ double in the fifth to end the game.
“We definitely flipped the switch and came out to hit the ball and to win today,” Davis said. “So it was fun to watch.”
No. 24 South Carolina-Upstate (18-5) started the game with a home run from its lead-off hitter and got two more hits in the first, but was allowed only one more hit the rest of the game.
Hanah Bowen took charge in the circle for the UA. South Carolina-Upstate had some aggressive hitters, she said, but her mentality was to jump on them early. Bowen focused on hitting corners, forcing batters to swing and miss.
Pitching coach Taryne Mowatt said it’s hard for a pitcher to come back after giving up a big hit, but was proud of the way Bowen shook off the home run.
“As a freshman, she’s still learning all of that (mindset), but she was able to come back after that, get us out of the inning and smooth sailing from there,” Mowatt said. “She did really well.”
Inside pitch
- Arizona’s Ashleigh Hughes and Tamara Statman sat out the entire Wildcat Invitational with the flu. And now it’s moved onto another player. Arizona ace Taylor McQuillin was visibly absent from the dugout during Sunday’s game. Candrea said McQuillin was the latest to fall sick and he’s more worried about getting her health back up.
“We need Taylor moving forward, so hopefully we can get that figured out,” Candrea said.
- The Wildcats will host Minnesota on Wednesday at 7 p.m., then take on Utah for the start of Pac-12 play beginning Friday.
