Nunley, Prince Shine in Circle as UK Sweeps No. 20 Utah, No. 22 ASU

TEMPE, Ariz. – Senior pitcher Kelsey Nunley shined in the circle on Monday afternoon, pitching seven scoreless innings in a 1-0 win over No. 20 Utah before turning the ropes over to junior Meagan Prince, who pitched four scoreless innings and picked up the win in No. 18 Kentucky’s 5-3 win over No. 22 Arizona State in Tempe to cap off a 5-1 weekend at the 2016 Kajikawa Classic. 

Kentucky won the first game on a walk-off wild pitch, as Hannah Huffman scored the game-winning run with Nunley at the dish to score the only run of the game. 

In the second game of the day, senior Christian Stokes belted a two-run home run to straightaway centerfield with the game tied 3-3 to score the go-ahead and game-winning run. 

With the two wins, Kentucky closes out the Kajikawa Classic 5-1 with wins over No. 4 Oregon, No. 20 Utah, No. 22 Arizona State and No. 25 Notre Dame. This is the first time that UK has defeated four different ranked opponents in their regular season, non-conference schedule since 2013 (No. 3 California, No. 7 Louisville, No. 16 Washington and No. 20 Stanford.

Kentucky will now travel to San Diego, Calif., next weekend to compete in the Campbell/Cartier Classis hosted by San Diego State. The Wildcats open the tournament on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. ET against the USD Toreros. 

Game 1 – Utah – Box Score (PDF)

Key Stat

9. Kentucky pitcher Kelsey Nunley recorded a season-high nine strikeouts on Monday afternoon against the Utes, including four in the final three innings of action. 

Key Play

Freshman Kelsee Henson came to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning in a tied game with Hannah Huffman on second base, who pinch ran for Abbey Cheek – who led off the inning with a walk. Henson stepped to the plate and belted a line-drive single to the right side to move runners to first and third with one out. 

Key Player

Kelsey Nunley was spectacular in seven innings of work, allowing just three hits and recording nine strikeouts. She did not walk a batter in the game.  

Run Recap

In the bottom of the seventh inning of a scoreless game, Abbey Cheek led off the inning with a walk and was pinch ran for by freshman Hannah Huffman. After a wild pitch moved her to second base, fellow freshman Kelsee Henson got her to third base with a single to put runners on the corners with one out. Kelsey Nunley stepped to the plate, and a wild pitch brought home Huffman from third to seal the win. FINAL – Kentucky 1, Utah 0

Game 2 – Arizona State – Box Score (PDF)

Key Stat

4.1. The number of innings that junior Meagan Prince pitched for Kentucky, allowing just three earned runs on eight hits with one walk and one strikeout. Nunley came on in relief and picked up the win to move to 3-0 on the season. 

Key Play

Senior Christain Stokes clubbed her first home run of the season to straightaway center in the top of the sixth inning after a three-run UK lead had been erased in the bottom of the fifth. The homer scored fellow senior Nikki Sagerman, who led off the inning with a single to the right side.

Key Player

Sylver Samuel went 2-for-4 in the game, including a two-run double in the top of the fourth inning to give Kentucky a 2-0 lead, scoring Ansley Smith and Rachel Metzger. 

Run Recap

In the top of the fourth, Kentucky slapper Sylver Samuel hit a two-run double to give Kentucky a 2-0 lead, scoring Ansley Smith and Rachel Metzger. A throwing error would bring home Erin Rethlake to make it 3-0 after three and a half innings. UK 3, ASU 0

After a groundout to begin the bottom of the fourth, ASU collected three-straight infield singles against Meagan Prince to load the bases with one out. Senior Kelsey Nunley then came in to relive Prince and gave up a three-run double off of the wall in left field. UK 3, ASU 3

Senior Christain Stokes clubbed her first home run of the season to straightaway center in the top of the sixth inning after a three-run UK lead had been erased in the bottom of the fifth. The homer scored fellow senior Nikki Sagerman, who led off the inning with a single to the right side. FINAL – Kentucky 5, Arizona State 3

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