Recap: No. 19 Stanford run-rules Sac State on Senior Day
On Friday, No. 19 Stanford softball defeated Sacramento State 9-0 in a game that ended after five innings due to run-rule. Zoe Prystajko (19-5) was the winning pitcher for the Cardinal in a relief role, pitching 2.2 innings and getting four strikeouts while Kennedie Bacon (10-7) was the losing pitcher for Hornets in a starting role, giving up three earned runs while not securing a single out. Stanford infielder River Mahler had a team-high 3RBIs while catcher Ava Gall had a two-run home run. Stanford finishes the regular season 36-12 overall (18-6 ACC) while Sacramento State finishes the regular season 30-18 overall and 9-6 in the Big Sky.
BOX SCORE: Sacramento State at Stanford-Friday, May 1st
“Yeah, it was a great day,” Stanford head coach Jessica Allister said after the game. “You know, it’s a day that has a lot of emotions and those are good emotions. You get to the end of something this exciting, like, it’s fantastic to feel those feelings. But I was really proud of the way the team played. It was great to send the seniors off on the note that we send them off on. I think it’s a good springboard heading into the postseason.”
“Yeah, it means the world for us,” Prystajko said of getting the win on Senior Day. “Knowing that every senior got to come in and kind of felt like postseason energy with the crowds and it was awesome. So it definitely meant a lot to us.”
Alyssa Houston was the starting pitcher for the Cardinal and she got off to a little bit of a shaky start walking the first batter she faced and then giving up a single with one out to have runners on first and second base. However, she would force back-to-back fly outs to end the top of the 1st inning, keeping it a 0-0 game.
In the bottom of the 1st, Stanford scored five runs. Kyra Chan got walked after which she advanced to second base via wild pitch. Taryn Kern then got hit by a pitch after which Mahler singled through the right side to advance to second base while Chan came home and Kern advanced to third base. Gall then got walked to load up the bases after which Jade Berry got hit by a pitch to keep the bases loaded and bring home Kern. It was now a 2-0 lead for the Cardinal.
At this point, Bacon’s day in the pitching circle was done as Alex Ortiz came in for relief. Ortiz would strike out Emily Jones for the first out. Then, Izzy Cacatian got walked to bring home Mahler, keeping the bases loaded. 3-0 lead for the Cardinal. Addyson Sheppard then reached first base on a fielding error as Gall came home. 4-0. Sydney Boulaphinh then struck out looking after which Chan was walked to bring home Berry. 5-0. Kern then grounded out to second base to end the bottom of the 1st.
In the 2nd inning neither team would score. Houston gave up a single in the top of the inning before getting three straight strikeouts. Stanford had a chance to extend the lead in the bottom of the inning with Berry on second base and Gall on third base with two outs. Cacatian would get walked to load up the bases only for Sheppard to strike out looking to end the inning.
In the top of the 3rd inning, Houston gave up a single to Madi Mendoza before forcing a ground out. Prystajko then came in to force a double play to end the top of the inning. In the bottom of the 3rd, Stanford scored four runs. With one out, Chan and Kern both got walked after which they advanced to second and third base via passed ball with Mahler at the plate. Mahler then hit a two-RBI single up the middle to bring home Chan and Kern. That made it 7-0.
“She was fantastic,” Allister said of Mahler. “No, I thought she squared up the ball. I thought she squared up different balls. I thought she had great at-bats and she’s been having great at-bats, so none of that is any sort of a surprise. But yeah, fantastic day.”
“Honestly, before the game, I was just reflecting on like, all my time spent here and I just was praying and was thanking God for the opportunity that he’s given me to be here and just taking me through my four years here,” Mahler said. “And so I just really wanted to go out there and I wanted to play for him and give him all the glory that he deserves because I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for God.”
Gall then went yard to deep center field to bring home Mahler as the ball nicked the fence and bounced over. 9-0 lead for the Cardinal. Berry and Jones then lined out and flied out to end bottom of the inning.
“Well, Ava just continues to get better and better, right?” Allister said of Gall. “And she’s headed in the right direction and is doing a heck of a job. So, getting her hot and getting her going is an important part of this run.”
From there, Stanford would go on to win 9-0 as neither team scored the rest of the way. In the top of the 4th, Prystajko got three straight batters out via fly out, strike out, and ground out. In the top of the 5th, Prystajko shut the door on the Hornets as she secured three straight strikeouts. Truly a great performance by the Cardinal both in the pitching circle and at the plate.
“I think just executing, like always,” Prystajko said of the key to the shutout. “Knowing that, I mean, the defense double play right when I came in, that was pretty awesome. Just backing them up and you know, with Ella back there, having my chemistry with her. So, it’s good.”
“Yeah, that’s really exciting,” Allister said of having a healthy pitching staff. “You know, obviously Alyssa coming back, continuing to give us really good starts is important. And you know, Zoe obviously continuing to throw really well for us and then it’s going to be important for the three freshmen, too. E [Elena Krause] is on her way back, which is going to be big as we go down the stretch, but Brewer and Bulanti and Krause are going to be an important piece of what we do. So yeah, healthy is important.”
With this win, Stanford has now won 14 games in a row. They’re really on a roll right now. They’re entering postseason play with a lot of momentum, which is exactly what you want at this time of year.
“Well, I think you nailed it. The key is building on it,” Allister said of their momentum. “And, you know, it’s nice maybe, that we get a little bit of this built in break so we’ll use it to get refreshed, take care of our bodies, take care of our schoolwork so when we get on the plane to Virginia on Tuesday, we’re ready to go.”
“I think just playing gritty,” Mahler said of the key to their winning streak. “It doesn’t have to look good. It just has to be tough. I think we do a good job of just being resilient, bouncing back from mistakes, I think we lean on each other. And I really just think that we’re so close that it’s about each other and not necessarily about performances.”
What certainly has helped Stanford during this run is having played the entire month of April in the state of California. That has really helped them settle in and get in the groove that they’ve been in.
“We don’t for one second take for granted that we are able to do that,” Allister said of staying close to home. “You know, it’s been beautiful. We knew it was beautiful at the beginning of the season when we put together the schedule and it’s been fantastic playing for home. So, we don’t take it for granted at all. We love it.”
“Yeah, I think it’s great,” Prystajko said of the home stretch. “I mean, hoping in two weeks we get to be back right here. This isn’t our last home game, hopefully. Hopefully to be in Virginia, it’s gonna be a good test for us anyways to be on the road, but yeah, I’m excited. Definitely a great environment here…I think, yeah, every next game is the most important game, but of course it’s in the back of our mind [to get home field advantage]. So hopefully, we’d love to host, but also if we’re on the road, let’s do it.”
What makes this win all the more special for Stanford is this came on Senior Day. To be able to celebrate your seniors after winning your final game of the regular season feels good. They would not have wanted this to go any other way. Seniors Taryn Kern, Kyra Chan, River Mahler, Emily Jones, Allison Morikawa, and Ella Murchison all got honored after the game.
“Yeah, I think everybody was pretty emotional going into it, but I think, I mean, there’s a reason that we wanted to do the ceremony afterwards,” Mahler said. “Because we wanted to win first and then celebrate after and I think that’s what makes this class very special is, you know, just the competitiveness that we have…I feel so loved by everyone here and my teammates and my teammates did an amazing job of making this day extremely special for all of us.”
Up next for Stanford is the ACC tournament to begin postseason play. That will begin on Wednesday, May 6th. Bracket is till TBD.
“I think just focusing on the pitch at hand,” Mahler said looking ahead to the postseason. “Just not getting too far ahead of ourselves, taking it one pitch at a time, one day at a time, one practice at a time, and just, we’re gonna get better, one percent better every day.”
“I think we’re feeling great,” Prystajko said of the pitching staff. “I think over the past couple weeks, just everyone getting more experience, everyone getting ready for postseason because it is definitely a bigger stage once it gets there. So I think just for all of us to get our work in, do well, build off that success, it’s a big thing.”
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