No. 20 ASU avoids disaster in walk-off win against Utah

(Photo: Elijah Longoria/WCSN)

PHOENIX – After months of being in and out of the lineup, graduate designated hitter Matt Polk walked up to the plate with an opportunity to save the day for Arizona State. With the game tied at 13, and the bases being loaded with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, Polk entered the batter’s box, got in his stance, and just stopped.

He stared down Utah pitcher Seth Graham-Pippen like a lion eyeing its prey.

When Polk saw his pitch and knocked a ground ball past third base, a collective sigh of relief rang throughout Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Polk raised his fist in the air above his head and sprinted into center field, being mobbed by his teammates.

“It was an amazing feeling,” Polk said, still out of breath from the celebrations.

Polk’s walk-off heroics brought the Sun Devils(25-11, 8-6 Big 12) back to life as they defeated the Utes(17-14, 6-8 Big 12) 14-13 to even the series and force a rubber match on Sunday. While the result became a positive for ASU, its up-and-down route to get there left much to be desired.

“There are ugly games in college,” Bloomquist said. “There are times where things get gut-wrenching, and I know the ninth inning was probably a gut-wrenching thing for any fan, any alumni, any coach, or anybody to watch. It just hurts.”

Much of that ugliness came in the top of the ninth inning, which ASU went into with a seven-run lead. Just about half an hour later, the Sun Devils wound up on the other side of the scoreboard, conceding an eight-spot in the top of the ninth.

Saturday’s bullpen performance continued a recent trend, as it mirrored last weekend’s seventh-inning collapse against Arizona, in which the Sun Devils also conceded seven runs in the seventh inning to lose,7-4.

“That was probably one of the most gut-wrenching things I’ve ever watched,” Bloomquist said. “I don’t have a whole lot of positive to say other than the fact that I’m really impressed with the fact that our offense was able to come in after that inning and put up two runs. A lesser team folds there.”

Unlike last Friday’s game in Tucson, the Sun Devils rallied back immediately after squandering a big lead as the ASU offense, led by sophomore center-fielder Landon Hairston and sophomore catcher Coen Niclai.

Hairston tallied five RBIs in Saturday’s contest, including two more home runs to bring his total to 22 on the season. The Golden Spikes midseason watch list member is now just six long balls away from breaking the ASU single-season home run record of 27, set by Mitch Jones in 2000.

“His work ethic,” junior shortstop PJ Moutzouridis said. “The way he goes about things, the little things. Whether that’s his approach, or who he’s facing on the mound. He’s the best player on that field when he steps on the field.”

The sophomore sensation was accompanied by Niclai, who, for the second time in five days, hit a grand slam to tie the game, with ASU going down four runs early.

Joining Niclai at the bottom of the ASU order was Moutzouridis, who has batted second for much of the season, but was moved down in the lineup in an attempt to put more runners on for the top hitters in the lineup.

While Moutzouridis was on base when Hairston launched his first home run over the wall, he was able to join in the home run party, as he powered the game-tying home run in the bottom half of the ninth, saving the Sun Devils from a nightmare.

“There was a huge influence from the bottom of the order,” Bloomquist said. “I can’t say it enough times, those guys getting on base for the top of the order in [Hairston] and those guys at the top are extremely crucial. They’re not your typical 7-8-9 hitters. I like having them down there to set the table for the top.”

Bloomquist has long stressed the Sun Devils’ ability to hit with runners in scoring position, given that their situational hitting has been a rollercoaster ride for much of the season. One game they’ll go 1-for-12, then the next they’ll go 10-for-20.

On Saturday night, the Sun Devils had 18 hits, including going 6-for-13 with RISP, a staunch improvement from Friday’s 1-for-7. As the Sun Devils continue into the heart of conference play, they will want to continue to clean up their hitting with RISP.

“A lot of base runners, which was good,” Bloomquist said. “It was a better approach tonight than it was yesterday. [The offense] saved us tonight. They did a good job of coming up with big hits and hitting the long ball tonight.”

After a strong first weekend start against Arizona, sophomore pitcher Taylor Penn took the mound on Saturday with hopes to give the Sun Devils some more balance early on in games. Instead, the right-hander lasted just 2.2 innings, allowing four runs and playing a part in ASU’s recent run of slow starts, in which it has trailed after three innings in four straight games.

Much of Penn’s downfall came from Bloomquist’s biggest pet peeve: free baserunners, in which Penn allowed four.

“Free 90s are what’s killing us,” Bloomquist said. “Not only from a walk standpoint, but from a wild pitch standpoint as well. Those things wear you down a little bit. We threw 232 pitches tonight. For the guys to do their job and to stay locked in defensively is a tribute to them.”

While both Penn and the bullpen were forced to bend, ASU’s clutch offense kept the Sun Devils from buckling. The walk-off win forces a rubber match on Sunday to decide the series at 1:05 p.m. MST at Muni.

“I’m more relieved that we won,” Bloomquist said. “Happy is a tough one put on top of this one. That was a tough one. I’m glad we won, relieved we won. But man, we have to push forward.”