(Photo: Susan Wong/WCSN)
It took a lot for Arizona State Baseball to get back into the win column on Friday night.
After dropping three of their last four – all against rival Arizona – the Sun Devils won a 16-inning, five-hour, gladiator match against Washington that began on Friday and carried over into Saturday. Braving the Pacific Northwest elements, ASU nabbed the 3-2 win thanks to stellar defense and pitching.
To say that the Sun Devils would be fatigued after a marathon like Friday’s game would seem like a severe understatement, but Saturday’s game proved that wasn’t the case, as ASU put together a full-team effort to claim the series victory 8-1.
ASU head coach Tracy Smith was ejected from the game in the second inning by home plate umpire Ryan Bleiberg after disputing a strike-three call on redshirt freshman second baseman Joe Lampe. The Huskies acquired their first lead of the series in the bottom half of the second, loading the bases on redshirt junior left-hander Justin Fall before redshirt freshman center-fielder Cole Miller brought home a run on a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0.
Washington’s starter – redshirt sophomore left-hander Tyson Guerrero – completely dismantled the Sun Devils through the first three innings, striking out seven of the first 11 men he faced. Guerrero came in sporting a 0.84 ERA in ten and two-thirds innings on the year.
ASU freshman first baseman Jack Moss got the best of Guerrero in the fourth inning though, belting his second home run of the season over the right-field wall. The two-run shot gave the Sun Devils a 2-1 lead.
Later in the inning, redshirt junior shortstop Drew Swift cleared the bases with a three-run double before coming home to score on freshman third baseman Hunter Haas’ RBI double. The two hits extended ASU’s lead to 6-1.
ASU batted around in the breakthrough inning, scoring six runs on four hits while reaching on the free pass three times.
Guerrero’s final line looked a lot different after the fourth, and he was replaced in the fifth inning by redshirt junior Gabe Smith. In all, Guerrero went four innings while surrendering six runs on five hits.
While on the mound for ASU, Fall dazzled. The lengthy left-hander went six innings while only allowing one run on six hits. He also struck out a career-best seven batters on a season-high 100 pitches.
Compared to last season, Fall appears to be a completely different pitcher. His ERA has dipped to an impressive 1.95, a mere fraction compared to his 5.68 mark in 2020. Fall also sports a 5-1 record on the season.
Even with redshirt freshman second baseman Sean McLain out of the lineup due to rest on Saturday, the Sun Devils still poured on the offense. They tallied two more runs following the monster fourth inning, both of which came via redshirt freshman right-fielder Kai Murphy’s bat. Murphy brought home freshman designated hitter Ethan Long on a sac-fly in the fifth inning and then singled home Lampe in the seventh to give ASU an 8-1 lead.
Redshirt senior catcher Sam Ferri was the only starter who did not get on base in the Sun Devils’ win.
With Saturday’s game finishing at a perhaps normal hour, ASU will catch up on sleep ahead of Sunday’s matchup against the Huskies, which is slated to begin at 12 p.m. MST.
