Rivalries in sports are always exciting, and the Territorial Cup is not an exception. 

While it may not mean a whole lot to those outside the state of Arizona, to Arizona State and the University of Arizona, it means everything.

Starting fast and establishing themselves was the difference in the game on Friday, as ASU jumped out to a huge 8-0 lead after just the first two innings of play. This start set the tone of the game and powered the Sun Devils to a 16-5 win over their in-state rival.

On Friday, March 20, ASU (23-7, 3-4 Big 12) began a three-game series against No. 11 Arizona (21-8, 4-3 Big 12) in the latest edition of the Territorial Cup. Coming into the game, the Sun Devils were just 2-7 in their last nine meetings with Arizona, but reversed the trend. 

Both teams came off inverse weekends. ASU pulled off a series upset where it won 2 of 3 games against  No. 15 Oklahoma State, while the Wildcats lost 2 of 3 to the reigning national champions, No. 2 Texas Tech. 

From the first batter, senior Kaylee Pond got her pitch and crushed it over the wall, opening the game with a solo home run. 

From there, the Sun Devils added on three more runs in the inning via another home run, this time from junior Emily Schepp. With a 4-0 lead already, senior right-handed pitcher Kenzie Brown was in the circle for ASU and put the Wildcats down in order. 

Already with an early lead, ASU wasn't content and scored another four runs in the second inning off a grand slam from junior first baseman Katie Chester. The Sun Devils led 8-0, and it was time for Brown to go back to work, and she did in a big way. 

Brown struck out the side, as Arizona just didn't have any answers for the Sun Devils. 

ASU scored another three runs in the third inning, as the lead bloomed to 11-0. The Wildcats finally broke through in the bottom of the inning and scored one run to get on the board and end the shutout. 

Yet, the Sun Devils answered right back, picked up two more runs in the fourth, but faced some trouble in the bottom of the inning. Brown allowed Arizona to load the bases and tried to navigate out of it, but couldn't and surrendered four runs. 

The Wildcats now had a little life after the rough start and managed to chip into the lead a little bit with the score now 13-5. 

However, ASU regrouped and headed into the fifth with a purpose and scored three more runs from home runs from sophomore right fielder Ashleigh Mejia, junior catcher Samantha Swan, and another from Schepp. 

With the score now 16-5, and in the fifth inning, the mercy rule was in play if Arizona couldn’t cut the deficit to less than eight runs. This was ultimately the case, as Brown found her stuff again and struck the final two batters of the game to close out the victory.

In the first meeting between the rivals, the Sun Devils emerged victorious thanks to a big offensive output paired with strong pitching. Racking up 16 runs on 15 hits and using the long ball have been a staple for ASU this season.

Friday marked ASU’s seventh game scoring double-digit runs, and its second-highest scoring game of the season. The victory also marked head coach Megan Bartlett's 100th win at ASU. 

After an exciting opening to this rivalry series, both teams play again on Saturday, with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.