March 31, 2006
PULLMAN, Wash. - After having their Pac-10 opening game suspended last night due to a light malfunction, the Sun Devils fell to the Cougars 6-1 when the game was resumed in Pullman, Washington. Daryl Arreola, who was the starter on Thursday night, took the loss to fall to 1-1 on the year. ASU is now 21-8, 0-1 in the Pac-10.
The game was delayed for 15 minutes after the first inning, as the lights in right field went out.
The Cougars got the scoring started in the second off Daryl Arreola after the delay, when Greg Lagreid singled through the right side to score a run. Andrew Romine, who made his season debut after undergoing rib removal surgery to correct a blood clot in January, saw his first defense opportunity in the second, catching a line drive to end the inning with two men on.
The lights again went out in the third inning, when the Sun Devils had one on and two out. At that point, the umpires suspended the game until Friday afternoon.
When the game resumed on Friday, the Sun Devils were unable to get to Jared Prince, the Cougar starter. Prince lasted six innings and allowed only four hits.
The Cougars struck again in the bottom of the fifth, putting 4 runs on the board thanks to errors, walks and hit batsmen. They took a 5-0 lead into the sixth.
Colin Curtis would get ASU on the board in the sixth, homering to right field off Prince to cut it to 5-1. The solo shot was the first earned run allowed by Prince this year.
The Devils would not get any closer however, as the Cougars would add another run in the eighth to pick up a 6-1 victory.
Curtis went 2-4 on the day, and Tony Barnette pitched well out of the bullpen for ASU. Barnette went three innings, allowing only two hits and one run, striking out two.
The Devils and Cougars will meet in the second game of the doubleheader on Friday afternoon.