Cooper crushes ASU; Lopes blank Devils again

Tuesday, April 15

Tempe, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

34-6

Arizona State

31-15

Grand Canyon

Arizona State

Photo by: Jack Gilday

4/15/2025 9:17:00 PM | Softball, Paul Coro

Box Score Photo Gallery

GCU's 11th consecutive victory collects 12 hits in Tempe

By: Paul Coro

TEMPE, Ariz. — To make a statement in college softball, Grand Canyon has to make noise as the scene's rising program.

GCU went into Arizona State's Farrington Stadium with the nation's third-best earned run average plainly stated, but left Tempe shouting with its second shutout victory against ASU this season.

With a 4-0 victory Tuesday night, the Lopes became the only team to blank the Sun Devils twice this season. A three-pitcher effort stymied ASU while freshman Jada Copper staggered the Sun Devils by starting the scoring with a RBI double and stacking the lead with a two-run home run.

Just as it cracked Softball America and D1Softball rankings at No. 25 nationally, GCU (34-6) won its 11th consecutive game of the season — one shy of a program record — and notched its third consecutive win in head-to-head meetings with ASU (31-15).

"It's always great to come over here and win, especially as well as they're playing right now," Lopes head coach Shanon Hays said. "I try not to make any big statements. People ask if it's a rivalry with ASU and UofA. It's just fun to play good teams. And it's nice not to give up a run in 14 innings (against ASU)."

Tempe, AZ - April 15th, 2025, GCU Softball defeats Arizona State 4-0 at Farrington Stadium. (Photo by: Jack Gilday/GCU).

Tempe, AZ - April 15th, 2025, GCU Softball defeats Arizona State 4-0 at Farrington Stadium. (Photo by: Jack Gilday/GCU).

In her second career start, GCU freshman left-hander Oakley Vickers set the tone to tame ASU's offense with two no-hit innings. Lopes junior right-hander Taryn Batterton kept the shutout for her 4 2/3 innings to improve to 15-1 once GCU senior right-hander Meghan Golden struck out the final batter with two runners on base for her second save.

I ending ASU's six-game winning streak, GCU dropped its team ERA to 1.81 to trail only Tennessee nationally.

"Oakley got us off to a good start, and Taryn came in and really threw well," Hays said. "Our pitching is the one that is backing us up and giving us a chance to do something and stay in games."

The Lopes rank 16th nationally in hitting but were coming off one of their quieter offensive games Saturday. GCU was held to one hit over seven innings, but won in the eighth inning when junior Emily Gonzalez doubled and Cooper singled to win the game and foretell the combination that undid ASU.

That pair kept it going Tuesday night, when Gonazlez recorded her first career 4-for-4 game and Cooper stayed among the nation's top 15 freshmen for home runs (11) and RBIs (38).

G Tempe, AZ - April 15th, 2025, GCU Softball defeats Arizona State 4-0 at Farrington Stadium. (Photo by: Jack Gilday/GCU).

onzalez led off the second inning with a single and scored when Cooper ripped a 2-2 pitch down the left-field line for a RBI double that she liked more than her home run.

"That first at bat was actually my favorite because after watching my other at bats the last time we played ASU, I knew they were getting me out on the rise in," said Cooper, who is now batting .396.

"So I was like, 'OK, I'm gonna take these and get a pitch that I want.' She threw me two strikes on the first two pitches and I'm like, 'OK, now I have to actually lock in.' She threw two balls, so I knew she had to come back hard, and I was ready for it. I came through for my team."

GCU stranded five runners on bases in the third and fourth innings, but a six-pitch, perfect fourth inning by Batterton quickly brought up the Gonzalez-Cooper knockout punch again in the top of the fifth.

After a one-out Gonzalez single, Cooper launched a two-run home run high off the stadium's left-center field scoreboard for a 3-0 lead.

Tempe, AZ - April 15th, 2025, GCU Softball defeats Arizona State 4-0 at Farrington Stadium. (Photo by: Jack Gilday/GCU).

"I've been working on seeing the ball in and she was having to throw me in, and I crushed it," Cooper said. "I honestly didn't know how far it went, but I saw the outfielder trailing back. I was like, 'Please go over.' "

It cleared the wall, like Batteron was clearing through the Sun Devils' lineup.

Now one of four pitchers in the nation with at least 15 wins and one loss, Batterton was amid a string of retiring nine straight batters for ASU, which had been hitting .314 this season.

GCU's defense did not make an error and came up with defensive gems from graduate left fielder Mia Weckel chasing a left-field liner, sophomore catcher Tinley Lucas blocking a pitch and throwing out a runner and freshman third baseman Willa Ford making a diving catch in front of ASU's dugout to end the sixth inning.

Tempe, AZ - April 15th, 2025, GCU Softball defeats Arizona State 4-0 at Farrington Stadium. (Photo by: Jack Gilday/GCU).

"We stole some key outs from them to keep them from getting into a rally, so that was nice to see," Hays said.

GCU's 12-hit night, one shy of the season high for an ASU opponent, was topped off by Gonzalez and Cooper again in the top of the seventh. Gonazlez doubled to lift her season batting average to .389, Cooper walked and Lucas was hit by a pitch to load the bases before a wild pitch scored freshman pinch-runner Macie Selfors for a 4-0 lead.

"If we keep playing like this, we could do great things," said Cooper, a Houston native. "We can go pretty far. We're hoping to get past regionals this year. And this is good energy to keep through this weekend and going through WAC."

The well-rounded performance backed up cracking Softball America and D1Baseball rankings at No. 25 and improved GCU's RPI ranking to No. 35.

"It means a lot to be recognized like that, but it doesn't really matter until the end," Batterton said. "We want to be playing in the WAC Championship. We want to be playing in a regional and possibly winning a regional."