(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
The Arizona State baseball team (30-8, 12-6 Pac-12) traveled north this weekend for a three-game series against the University of Utah (12-21, 4-14 Pac-12) The Sun Devils won their first Pac-12 series since sweeping Arizona March 29-31, taking two of three in Salt Lake City.
The first game of the series was was a close game that required extra innings. The Sun Devils rode another strong start from Alec Marsh. The junior went seven innings for the Devils, coming off his complete game three-hit performance against Oregon State.
Utah almost walked off with the win in the bottom of the 11th on a deep fly ball to right field, but Carter Aldrete saved the team with a diving catch to extend the game.
The Devils capitalized on Aldrete’s catch in the next-half inning, scoring seven runs in the top of the 12th and held on to win 11-6.
Head coach Tracy Smith took to Twitter following the game and said “there are special moments when a player ‘wills’ his team to victory. We saw one of those moments last night.”
A common theme throughout the season for the Devils has been their versatility. With a small roster the team has been forced to be stretched to the maximum, Smith is getting great production from freshman two-way player Erik Tolman.
In the beginning half of the season Tolman was primary used as a pitcher, but more recently he has been seeing time as the starting designated hitter. Tolman recorded a hit in the first two games of the series.
Arizona State carried their performance into the second game of the series. Starting on the mound for the Devils was right-handed pitcher Boyd Vander Kooi. The sophomore went the distance for the Devils, recording the first complete game of his collegiate career. Vander Kooi had five strikeouts on 114 pitches.
The win on Friday for the Devils was their 30th of the season, the first time that the team has reached that mark since the 2016 season.
The Sun Devils could not complete the sweep in the final game of the series on Saturday. The Utes led wire-to-wire, scoring six runs on 15 hits. The Devils struggled to capitalize with runners in scoring position, and were shutout through six innings.
Spencer Torkelson saw a 22-game hitting streak snapped Saturday with an 0-5 day at the plate.
The Devils will travel back home to Tempe for a weekday game this Tuesday against University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The team will be looking for redemption after squandering a 9-4 ninth-inning lead on April 9th in Las Vegas.
