PHOENIX, AZ – Resuming conference play against rival Arizona State, Arizona Baseball (13-9, 3-6) did not have the best weekend, being swept by the Sun Devils.
Fresh off a win over Utah Tech in a mid-week tilt, Arizona Baseball returned to the diamond as they resumed Pac-12 play to take on rival Arizona State.
Taking on the Sun Devils for a three-game stint, Wildcat fans were hopeful entering this one, especially as Arizona was looking to get back on track.
Despite a decent amount of offensive production, unfortunately, it was the Wildcats’ pitching that came up short in this one, falling in all three games despite being competitive in two of three games, the Wildcats were humbled as they were swept by ASU.
Being dominated in all facets of the game, Arizona Baseball has now last the last six-straight conference games.
Game 1:
Turning to TJ Nichols on Friday evening, the junior right-hander was hoping to get things on track for Arizona. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t last too long as he surrendered six runs (five earned) on five hits with seven strikeouts.
He would be relieved by Jackson Kent and Dawson Netz and those two found their rhythm entering the final three frames as they held the Devils scoreless.
And despite Arizona jumping out to the 2-0 lead in the first inning, it was all Devils after that as they scored five unanswered runs.
Kiko Romero and Garen Caufield would lead the way, hitting a combined 5-7 from the dish with five RBIs. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough as the Wildcats fell 6-5.
Game 2:
Turning to Bradon Zastrow on Saturday evening, the left-handed junior would have a solid day in this one as he threw three innings and surrendered just one on five hits. Unfortunately, his day would be cut short as he would eventually be relieved by Eric Orloff, Casey Hintz, Dawson Netz, Derek Dees, and Chris Barraza.
Together, the Wildcats started strong but faded in the end as they surrendered seven runs on 11 hits.
Offensively, Arizona would get things going early, plating three runs in the second inning, but it was ASU’s offense that shined in the end, using a big sixth inning to come away with the 7-4 win.
The Wildcats were led by Mac Bingham as he finished his day 2-4 from the plate with two RBIs.
Game 3:
Hoping to avoid the sweep in this one, Arizona would look to Aiden May as he got the start on the bump for the Cats. May would get a bit roughed up in this one as last just four innings, surrendering six runs on nine hits.
Kent Jackson, Cam Walton, Tony Pluta, and Trevor Long would come on in relief, but the Devils continued their dominance from the plate, scoring 10 runs on 15 hits.
Arizona would pull ahead briefly after Chase Davis blasted a three-run home run in the third inning, but unfortunately, that would be about the only bright spot in this one as Arizona came up short in the end, falling 10-6.
Offensively, Kiko and Chase went a combined 3-7 from the plate, with five RBIs.
Where does Arizona Baseball go from here?
With the sweep, Arizona falls to 13-9 (3-6) on this young season and will return to action on Tuesday to take on Grand Canyon. First pitch against the Lopes is set for 6:00 P.M. MST at Hi Corbett Field.
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