March 22, 2011
FULLERTON, Calif. - Arizona State dropped the first game of a two-game midweek series at Cal State Fullerton on Tuesday night, falling 7-3 at Goodwin Field. The Titans jumped on starter Jake Barrett early and never looked back as ASU falls to 15-5 on the year.
The Titans took advantage of a Sun Devil error in the first inning, scoring twice on Barrett to take an early 2-0 lead. After a leadoff single by Richy Pedroza, Anthony Trajano bunted the ball to Riccio Torrez at third, but his throw got by Zach Wilson at first putting runners at second and third and no one out. A single by Nick Ramirez brought them both home.
Arizona State got a run back in the second to pull within 2-1. After Joey DeMichele led off with a double off the wall, he moved to third on a ground out by Wilson and scored on a ground out by Matt Newman. The Titans would add another run in their half of the second to push the lead back to two runs.
Cal State Fullerton would chase Barrett in the fourth, as the Titans scored four times to move ahead 7-1. Four of the first five hitters reached base in the fourth, all of whom came around to score. Barrett lasted 3.1 innings, allowing seven runs, six earned, on seven hits. He struck out two and also hit two. He took the loss, dropping to 1-2 on the year.
Arizona State added a run in the sixth on a fielder's choice by Torrez then threatened again in the ninth. They scored a run on an Austin Barnes RBI single, and would have the bases loaded with two outs, but Nick Ramirez, the Titan closer, ended the threat to secure the win.
Zach Wilson and Austin Barnes had two hits apiece in the win. Mark Lambson threw 3.2 innings of shutout ball, and Josh Moody worked a scoreless eighth out of the bullpen.
The Devils and Titans will wrap up the brief series tomorrow afternoon. The game, originally scheduled at 6 p.m., will begin at 2 p.m. to stay ahead of expected rain on Wednesday.