Arizona softball swept at No. 7 Stanford, Pac-12 skid extends to 7

Arizona may need another late-surge (or the first-ever Pac-12 Tournament title) to ensure another NCAA tourney berth after getting swept again on the road.

The 20th-ranked Wildcats lost 3-1 at 7th-ranked Stanford on Saturday afternoon, their seventh consecutive loss in Pac-12 play. They fell to 3-9 in league play and 24-15 overall, sitting in eighth place in the 9-team conference.

Stanford (31-6, 8-4) took the lead for good with two runs in the bottom of the fifth off UA pitcher Devyn Netz, who took the loss to drop to 11-11. Netz allowed three runs and seven hits with one strikeout over 4.2 innings, with freshman Aissa Silva retiring all four batters she faced in relief.

The UA finished with five hits, getting its run in the top of the second on a solo home run from Dakota Kennedy. Kennedy was 2 for 2 with a walk.

It doesn’t get any easier for Arizona, as it hosts No. 3 UCLA next weekend at Hillenbrand Stadium. Nine of its last 13 regular-season games are at Hillenbrand, where the UA is 17-3 season and where the Pac-12 tourney will be held May 10-13.