(Phoenix, AZ) Sun Devil Baseball took down rival Arizona, 10-4, in front of the biggest crowd of the season in the first of five games against the Wildcats this season.
Arizona State (12-4) got big performances from players up and down the lineup to secure the victory, as three players had multi-hit nights and three players had multiple RBIs. Additionally, the Sun Devils stole three bases and homered twice.
The offense got Arizona State on the board quickly, as back-to-back hits by pitches and a single loaded the bases with no outs, allowing Austen Roellig to drive in a run with a sac fly. Arizona tied the game up in the first, but the Sun Devil pitching staff was able to hold the Wildcats at bay long enough for the offense to heat up.
A big fourth inning saw Arizona State score five runs, and the Sun Devils tacked on runs in the sixth and seventh, and two runs in the eighth.
On the pitching side, after Colin Linder opened the game and threw 2.0 innings, Taylor Penncame in and tossed 3.0 innings of one-hit ball, earning the win. Jaden Alba struggled giving up three runs without recording an out, but Sean Fitzpatrick came up big, pitching 3.0 innings with just one hit allowed. Derek Schaefer then came in to pitch the ninth, sealing the win with a scoreless frame.
Turning point
Locked in a 1-1 duel early, the Sun Devils posted one of their vaunted crooked numbers in the bottom of the fourth inning. A Roellig single set the table for Dean Toigo’s third home run in as many games to make it a 3-1 lead. A pair of doubles from Dominic Smaldino and Beckett Zavorek brought another run in before an inevitable Landon Hairston did what he does best, launching an electric two run home to give ASU its 13 half-inning this season with at least five runs.
Big moment
Things got a little hairy for the Sun Devils as Arizona got right back into the game with a three-run missile with no outs in the top of the sixth to cut the lead to 6-4. Sean Fitzpatrick was called upon to save the day and did so with the best performance of his career. The captain gave ASU 3.0 innings of scoreless relief in an outing that tied for the longest of his career. Fitzpatrick struck out four with no walks and just one hit allowed.
Final straw
While Fitzpatrick did his part, the Sun Devil offense did theirs. Hairston singled and stole second and scored on a Moutzouridis RBI single to get one run back in the bottom of the sixth to make it 7-4. Heads up-base running would plate another in the bottom of the seventh as Dominic Smaldino scored from second on a two-out error on what should have been a routine 6-3 groundout where the throw was rushed due to Brody Briggs’ hustle down the line. The big knock came with two outs in the bottom of the eight as ASU effectively put the game away on Roellig’s two-RBI single up the middle to make it 10-4. Derek Schaefer was unfazed by a leadoff single in the ninth and stranded two runners with a pair of strikeouts to seal the victory.
The big number
6 – Since being thrown into the fire as a pinch runner after Nu’u Contrades had to leave Sunday’s finale against LMU in the first inning with an injury, Austen Roellig has answered the call with six hits in his eight at-bats since that moment. He has scored six runs and added three RBIs and has only had two plate appearances where he didn’t reach base OR have an RBI.
Notables
- ASU has scored multiple runs in 33 of its 54 half-innings with runs this season. ASU has 20 innings with at least three runs scored, 17 with at least four and 13 with at least five.
- In his last 49 games, Landon Hairston has 28 extra-base hits after his home run today He had just one extra-base hit through his first 27 games as a Sun Devil.
- Hairston has recorded an RBI in nine games for ASU this season and has multiple in five of those. He has seven in the last three games alone.
- The Sun Devils struck out double-digit batters for the 10th time this season and have 49 strikeouts over the last four games.
- The Sun Devils reached double digit hits for the 11th time this season. 4 of ASU’s 10 hits today were for extra bases (two doubles, two homers).
- ASU has outscored opponents 859-507 over its last 89 regular season games, going 63-26 in the process.
- Arizona starting pitcher Collin McKinney has given up 35 earned runs over 18 appearances over the last two seasons. Seven of those (20.0 percent) have come while facing the Sun Devils.
- While Arizona’s record has been lacklust this season, the team had still by-and-large pitched the ball pretty well with a 4.50 ERA on the year entering tonight. ASU 10 runs against the Wildcats were tied for the second-most allowed by Arizona this season.
Arizona’s Nate Novitske had been the one dominant offensive force for the Wildcats this season with his .440 batting average entering the night ranked third in the Big 12 and 43rd nationally. The Sun Devils held him to an 0-for-5 night with three strikeouts. It was just the second game this season Novitske had been held hitless and the only game he has not reached base in his young career.
Up next
The Sun Devils will kick off Big 12 Conference play on Friday against TCU. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. AZT and the game will be streamed live via ESPN+ and also available over the local airwaves on KDUS 1060 AM with Tim Healey and Max Rossiter on the call.
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