A strong defensive showing from Arizona State Baseball led to a 2-1 win over Sacramento State at Phoenix Municipal Stadium on Saturday night.
Redshirt freshman right-fielder Kai Murphy, redshirt junior shortstop Drew Swift, redshirt freshman first-baseman Nate Baez and redshirt freshman second-baseman Sean McClain were the culprits of great defense by ASU. Murphy fell over the right field wall in foul territory for a catch to begin the ball game, and Swift cut off a run in the top of the fifth to keep Sacramento State from extending its 1-0 lead.
“It’s great to have those guys back there,” ASU redshirt sophomore right hander Tyler Thornton – the game’s starter for ASU – said. “They’re really great players. I feel really confident pitching with that defense behind me.
“We wanted to come set the tone after the bitter taste of last night,” ASU Head Coach Tracy Smith said. “For [Murphy] to do that defensively was great. It got guys going. He was very much a key to our success tonight.”
It was then the offense’s turn to make an impact. Murphy led off the bottom of the fifth with the first home run of the season for the Sun Devils to tie things at one apiece. After a strikeout by redshirt senior catcher Nick Cheema, redshirt freshman center-fielder Joe Lampe showed off his wheels by turning a simple single up the middle into a double to put the Sun Devils back in business.
“Once I saw it was a base hit and the guy pulled up slowly, I had no hesitation,” Lampe said. “I came [to ASU] to get on base for guys like Swift and (redshirt junior designated hitter Hunter) Jump and be able to score from first and it worked out perfectly tonight.”
Swift would then single Lampe home to put ASU up 2-1.
After an 0-3 performance at the plate on Friday, Lampe said he wasn’t concerned heading into Saturday.
“Baseball is a game of failure and it’s a long season,” Lampe said. “I actually thought I saw the ball well yesterday but it’s how the ball rolls. I just stayed locked in and in my routine.”
Smith had praise for his center-fielder.
“Speed shows up every day,” Smith said. “I loved the hustle play and it shows he’s not satisfied. He plays hard every day. He’s usually the first guy here every day working on his body to stay in shape and as a result his play is a reflection of him. He works out hard, plays hard and makes an impact.”
The Sun Devils got a second straight solid start on the mound on Saturday night. Thornton went 5.2 innings, allowed six hits, one run and struck out six Hornet batters.
Junior right-hander Travis Adams got the start for Sacramento State and pitched well through four innings, allowing just three hits before he ran into trouble in the fifth. He ended the night going 4.1 innings, while allowing seven hits and two runs on 65 pitches.
Fellow junior right-hander Jack Zalasky would relieve Adams of his duties in a tight spot with two runners on base, but would strike out Jump and Baez to end the frame.
ASU redshirt junior left-hander Justin Fall came on in relief of Thornton with two outs in the sixth. Fall would bridge the gap to freshman right-hander Ethan Long by going 2.1 innings, giving up just two hits and striking out two against 10 batters.
After redshirt freshman right-hander Cam Dennie blew Friday night’s 2-0 lead in the ninth inning, the Sun Devils turned to Long to get them past the finish line on Saturday.
Sacramento State junior infielder Martin Vincelli-Simard started off the 9th with a walk after a 12 pitch battle. Junior outfielder Trevor Doyle popped out to Swift but a single by junior utility player Aaron Zeidman put runners at first and second. After senior infielder Keith Torres flew out to Lampe in center, Long got sophomore infielder Jorge Bojorquez to fly out to Lampe again in center to end the ballgame.
“Ethan (Long) didn’t let that at-bat impact the emotions and he was still aggressive in the zone and that was our whole message, which was don’t fear the result,” Smith said. “You gotta keep battling and just play hard and don’t let the game dictate how you react emotionally and I think we did a really good job of that tonight.”
