May 19, 2004
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (www.TheSunDevils.com) -- Arizona State shortstop Dustin Pedroia hit a three-run home run as part of a seven-run second inning and Travis Buck went 3-for-5 to lead the No. 13 Sun Devils to a 12-5 victory over New Mexico State Wednesday night at Presley Askew Field.
The Devils continued its recent surge at the plate, backing up Tuesday's 26-hit, 22-5 win over New Mexico, with 12 more runs and 14 more hits Wednesday against the Aggies. Four players notched multi-hit games and for the second straight night and 17th time this season the Devils played errorless in the field.
ASU extended its winning streak to a season-high tying nine games and has won 14 of the last 16 games to improve to 37-13 overall. The Devils finished the non-conference portion of their schedule 27-5, including winning all three games this year against New Mexico State. The win snapped a two-game losing streak at Presley Askew Field to run ASU's record to 29-2 all-time against the Aggies. NMSU finished the regular season 32-23-1 and will head to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament next week.
Albuquerque native Quentin Andes (Cibola High School) picked up the win on the mound to improve to 4-1 on the season. The freshman right-hander gave up two hits and one run in 2.2 innings while striking out three. Junior starting pitcher Ty Marotz (Crystal Lake, Ill.) scattered seven hits and struck out a career-high five in 3.2 innings. Freshman lefty Josh Blake (Overland Park, Kan.) finished off the win giving up two hits and one run in the final 2.2 innings.
The Devils tagged NMSU ace Dustin Cameron (6-7) for six hits and nine run in an inning and a third. Left-handed reliever Joseph Hampel and Rory Coppinger combined to give up eight hits and three runs out of the bullpen.
Buck (Richland, Wash.) went 3-for-5 and finished the road swing through New Mexico 5-for-7. With three singles he extended his hitting streak to a career-high 13 games and also stole his 10th base of the season. Junior first baseman Chris Cook (Mesa, Ariz.) homered for the second straight night, going 2-for-5 with three RBI. The transfer from Mesa CC has five homers on the season and had nine RBI in the two games in New Mexico.
Redshirt junior Ryan McKenna (Elgin, Ill.) went 3-for-5 and with five hits in the last two games has raised his season batting average 84 points to .324. Pedroia (Woodland, Calif.) connected on his team-leading ninth home run of the year to extend his hitting streak to four games. Pedroia now has 285 career hits, giving him sole possession of fourth place in the ASU record books and now just 15 hits away from the elusive 300-hit milestone. Senior second baseman Nick Walsh (Alamo, Calif.) added two hits to extend his hitting streak to five games and raise his season average to .368, second best on the team.
NMSU leadoff hitter Chris Ewen and second baseman Xardiel Cotto each tabbed two hits to lead the Aggies at the plate.
The Devils jumped out to the early lead with a two-run first inning. A throwing error by NMSU shortstop Gavin Monjaras allowed the first run to score and catcher Tuffy Gosewisch plated the second run with a safety squeeze down the first base line.
The Aggies answered in the bottom half of the first with a solo home run with Cotto's 11th home run of the season. Marotz got out of a two-out jam when he struck out designated hitter Emory Davies with a pair of runners on base.
Pedroia highlighted the seven-run second inning with a three-run home run over the 385-foot sign in right-center field. Cook added a run-scoring single and freshman center fielder Colin Curtis (Issaquah, Wash.) drove in a pair with a single to right field.
After a pair of scoreless frames by the Devils, NMSU cut into the eight -run lead with a solo home run from right fielder Patrick Field in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Aggies added another run on a bases loaded walk, but Andes struck out NCAA home run leader Billy Becher with the bases loaded the end the rally.
ASU added a run in the sixth on a groundout by Gosewisch and then tagged on two more with a two-run home run by Cook in the top of the seventh.
NMSU third baseman Adrian Ballesteros belted a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh inning. The home run off Andes to left field was the 109th of the year for the Aggies, breaking the school record.
The Sun Devils continue its tour of the Southwest this weekend, meeting rival Arizona for a crucial three-game Pac-10 series at Kindall Field (May 21-23). ASU is 2-0 against the Wildcats this season and has won 14 of the last 17 games dating back to 2000 against its rivals. ASU is expected to start senior RHP Jeff Mousser (5-3, 3.57 ERA) on Friday. The game will be televised live nationally on CSTV and locally on AZ-TV at 7 p.m. (PST).
Game Notes: ASU is now 12-0 on the season when Nick Walsh starts and hits ninth in the batting order... the two-run first inning marked the 26th time the Devils have scored in their first at-bat... ASU is 23-3 when scoring in the first inning... the 12 runs marks the 18th time the Devils have scored in double-digits this season (8.28 runs per game average)... the Devils totaled 34 runs, 40 hits and no errors in the two games against New Mexico and New Mexico State... Pedroia extended his hitting streak to five games and has now hit safely in 43 of ASU's 50 games this season... his 285 career hits give him a .388 (285-for-740) career batting average in 176 games (never missed a start)... Buck had five consecutive hits before reaching on an error in the sixth inning... he has a current 13-game hitting streak in which he is 22-for-54 (.407)... freshman Colin Curtis went 1-for-5 with two RBI and stole his team high tying 10th base... the 10 stolen bases are fifth in the ASU freshman record books... Chris Cook homered for the second straight game and has five on the season... ASU played errorless in the field for the 17th time this season and seventh time in the last 15 games... ASU handed NMSU only its 10th home loss this season (24-10 overall at Presley Askew Field). Arizona State 12, New Mexico State 5 (May 19, 2004 at Las Cruces, N.M.) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Arizona State....... 270 001 200 - 12 14 0 (37-13) New Mexico State.... 100 200 110 - 5 11 3 (32-23-1) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Pitchers: Arizona State - Marotz; Andes(4); Blake(7). New Mexico State - Cameron; Hampel(2); Coppinger(7). Win-Andes(4-1) Loss-Cameron(6-7) T-2:55 A-1450 HR ASU - Pedroia (9); Cook (5). HR NMSU - Cotto (11); Ballesteros (18); Fields (4). --Sun Devil Baseball--