Arizona third baseman Malia Martinez had six RBIs, including a grand slam, as the Wildcats run-ruled Stanford again, 13-2, on Saturday afternoon at Hillenbrand Stadium, completing their fifth Pac-12 sweep to start the season and extending their winning streak to 20 games.
The win improved No. 7 Arizona’s Pac-12 record to 15-0, which leads the conference ahead of UCLA (13-1) and Washington (14-4).
A #MaliaMash to give the Cats a dozen runs in the third! pic.twitter.com/08TL2GZcm2
— Arizona Softball (@ArizonaSoftball) April 20, 2019
The Wildcats (38-7 overall) are off to their second-best Pac-12 start in UA history. Only the 1994 team’s 23-0 start in the Pac-10 is better. The Wildcats won the Women’s College World Series that year with a 63-3 record.
The 20-game winning streak ties for the 15th-longest in program history. The are tied with the 1995 and 2002 teams. Next are three 21-game winning streaks. Arizona plays at last-place Cal (2-13 in the Pac-12) next weekend.
Ten of Arizona’s 15 conference victories have ended via the mercy rule. The Wildcats have outscored their Pac-12 opposition 143-14 over the 15 wins. Arizona has also won nine straight Pac-12 series dating to last season.
Arizona Softball Longest Winning Streaks
[table “” not found /]The Wildcats, who also had a home run by Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza today, tallied their 13 runs off Stanford behind nine hits and seven walks. Palomino-Cardoza, the leadoff hitter, went 2 for 3 to improve her batting average to .366. She has 14 homers with 51 RBIs this season.
🧹 FINAL » #7 Arizona 13, Stanford 2 (5 innings) 🧹
Make it five straight sweeps for the Cats, whose winning streak turns 2⃣0⃣ games today!#BearDown || #RaiseTheA pic.twitter.com/Z2B1ao7rDx
— Arizona Softball (@ArizonaSoftball) April 20, 2019
Martinez’s six RBIs gives her 50 this season with 12 home runs and a .364 batting average. Arizona has three players with at least 50 RBIs — Jessie Harper (55), Palomino-Cardoza (51) and Martinez (50). Dejah Mulipola has 49.
Arizona ace Taylor McQuillin improved to 17-5 with the victory. She carried a no-hitter into the fourth. She finished working four innings, allowing a run on two hits with two strikeouts and a walk. Gina Snyder worked the fifth inning, allowing a run on one hit with a strikeout and no walks.
Recommended for you
