PHOENIX – An early lead and a late rally weren’t enough as Sun Devil Baseball fell to No. 15 Cal, 8-4, in 11 innings on Saturday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.
The Sun Devils (19-13, 5-9) quickly went up 2-0 with a pair of runs in the second before Cal answered with four runs in the latter half of the game and held a 4-2 advantage heading into the bottom of the ninth. However, ASU used consecutive two-out RBI knocks to send Saturday into extra innings.
Pinch-hitter Zach Cerbo drew a walk with one out in the ninth, moved to second on a groundout and came home on a single from center fielder Chris Beall to bring the Devils within a run. Second baseman Andrew Snow battled through a nine-pitch at-bat and drove in the game’s tying run in the form of a double to right-center field.
The Bears (21-10, 9-5) put up four runs in the top of the 11th on five hits, including a pair of solo home runs, but the Devils fought back again and put the tying run on deck before a double play and a groundout ended the rally.
Right-hander Eder Erives (4-1) struck out two in a scoreless 10th, but was accountable for the first two runs in the 11th and took his first loss of the season.
Starting left-hander Eli Lingos pitched into the seventh inning and was responsible for two runs on 11 hits and a walk in a no-decision. He put together his third quality start of the year and stranded seven on base, including five in scoring position, to hold Cal scoreless until two outs in the fifth.
Designated hitter Sebastian Zawada tallied a solo home run and a double, right fielder Gage Canning went 2-for-4 with a RBI, and Snow added a pair of hits, including the game-tying double in the ninth.
Zawada drove a 2-2 pitch over the wall in left field in the second inning for the game’s first run, and the Devils followed with a walk by left fielder Tyler Williams, a single from center fielder Daniel Williams and a RBI single from Canning to take an early 2-0 lead. It was Zawada’s team-best fifth home run of the season, but his first since March 12 against UC Davis.
Lingos and the infield helped the Devils’ escape jams early and negated a pair of leadoff singles. He stranded three runners in scoring position through the first four innings, and the team turned back-to-back inning-ending double plays in the second and third frames to keep Cal off the board.
The Bears used three singles, including a two-out RBI base hit from third baseman Mitchell Kranson, to get on the scoreboard in the fifth, but Lingos delivered a swinging strikeout with the bases loaded to end Cal’s rally and keep ASU’s lead intact, 2-1.
ASU fell behind for the first time in the afternoon, 3-2, in the seventh. Lingos was lifted after a leadoff triple and right-handed reliever Grant Schneider coerced a pair of groundouts before he gave way to left-hander Reagan Todd. Cal drove a RBI double to center field in its first at-bat against Todd to knot the game at two runs apiece and a fielding error on a hard-hit grounder to first base pushed the Bears ahead by one.
Cal extended its advantage to two in the eighth behind a leadoff double and a triple, but right-hander James Ryan was able to keep the game within reach as he recorded three consecutive outs to close out the inning.
Cerbo and Canning reached base with no outs in the bottom of the 11th on a walk and a hit-by-pitch, but Beall grounded into a fielder’s choice double play and Greer grounded out to the pitcher.
Notes: ASU moved to 67-58 against ranked opponents since 2010…ASU moved to 15-2 this season when scoring first…ASU moved to 4-1 in extra-innings games this season and 11-4 under head coach Tracy Smith…Cerbo made his first career appearance at first base in the 10th inning…Canning has seven hits in the past five games, including three games with two hits.
Up Next
The Devils close out their three-game set with Cal on Sunday, April 17, at 12:30 p.m. at Phoenix Muni. The matchup will be streamed live via thesundevils.com and broadcast on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060 with Tim Healey and Max Rossiter on the call.
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