(Photo: Kimmy Davis/WCSN)
On the precipice of Pac-12 play, No. 12 Arizona State has one more test ahead, as it hosts the UNLV Rebels at 6:30 on Wednesday.
The Sun Devils are fresh off a series victory against Long Beach State, and currently boast a 9-5 record.
On the other hand, UNLV is coming off a series loss to its in-state rivals, the University of Nevada, and come in with a 7-7 record.
Last year, the Rebels amassed a 36-25 record and earned a share of the first place title with New Mexico in the Mountain West Conference. From there, they received a two-seed in the playoffs, but failed to move out of Regionals in the NCAA Tournament.
UNLV is coached by Tim Chambers, who is currently in his fifth season and in 2014 was the first UNLV coach to win Mountain West Coach of the Year since 2005.
Although the UNLV offense has been spotty at times this season ( it has been shut out three times already), it still has hitters that could threaten the Sun Devil pitchers.
The Rebel’s main force is freshman Payton Squier, who has been off to a great start, hitting .388 this season.
Another hitter to watch for is senior Dylan Ellis. He has made the most of his limited action by hitting .450.
While the hitters for UNLV can be inconsistent, its pitching staff is a different story.
Starting pitcher D.J. Myers has been excellent for the Rebels, boasting a team-low 1.71 ERA.
Kenny Oakley has arguably been even better than Myers, dealing for a 2.42 ERA. He also earned Mountain West Pitcher of the Week due to his magnificent performance on Saturday when he pitched a complete game and struck out 11 en route to a 1-0 win over Nevada.
As for pitchers who could see action in this midweek contest, the main candidates for UNLV are Cody Roper and Blaze Bohall, as both have seen playing time in midweek starts already this season.
According to ASU head coach Tracy Smith, freshman Ryan Hingst will likely deliver the first pitch for the Sun Devils in what would be the first start of his collegiate career. Game time is at 6:30 pm MT.
