PHOENIX, Ariz. – In a game that featured 33 total runs over five hours, the No. 9 Sun Devil Baseball team escaped victorious after walking off in the ninth inning to earn a 17-16 victory, sweeping rival Arizona in a series for the first time since 2009.
Spencer Torkelson, Alika Williams and Lyle Lin all hit home runs on a day where offense was at a premium while pitching and defense were not.
Both teams combined for eight errors – four apiece – but none bigger than the final one of the game as the Arizona shortstop booted a ball with the bases loaded and two outs in bottom of the ninth on a Williams ground ball, allowing Drew Swift to score for ASU's third walk-off victory of the season.
The Sun Devils drew 15 walks in the contest – a season-high, the most by any Pac-12 team in a game this season and tied for the third-most in program history. The two squads combined for 29 total hits and 19 stranded batters.
Sam Romero again proved to be the hero of the pitching rotation, returning to the mound less than 24 hours after earning a save in ASU's win on Saturday to earn the victory on Sunday. With the game knotted at 16-16 in the ninth inning, Romero was tasked with facing the heart of the potent Arizona State order, which had combined for seventh hits and 10 runs already on the afternoon. The senior vet responded in kind with a scoreless frame – just the third scoreless frame for the Wildcats in the game - to give the Devils a chance to walk it off in the ninth.
For the Sun Devil offense, Trevor Hauver went 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs and two doubles. Hunter Bishop drew four walks and scored four runs in the effort, also notching a double and swiping a bag. Williams was 2-for-6 with a team-best three RBIs while also twice putting the ball into play and forcing Arizona errors that also scored runs – including the final run of the contest.
The Wildcats pounced on the scoreboard first today, bringing in four runs in the first inning. Facing the largest deficit it has faced all season, the Sun Devils responded back by scoring three runs themselves in the bottom half of the inning to get back within one.
Arizona countered with a hit a three-run homer in the next inning to go up by four runs again, but Spencer Torkelson and the Sun Devils retaliated with a two-run home run in the bottom of the frame to get back within 7-5.
Arizona State tied the game in the third on two-RBI single from Hauver, but Arizona quickly retook the lead in the fourth thanks to some shoddy ASU defense to make it 9-7. Against, the Sun Devils were up to task as Alika Williams' second homer of the year, a two-run shot, brought the game even at 9-9.
Again, Arizona tacked on two more in the fifth before ASU finally took its first lead of the game in the bottom of the fifth with four runs, capped by Lyle Lin's two-run shot.
Arizona got one back in the sixth but ASU netted two in the same frame to increase its lead to 15-12.
After a scoreless seventh inning from both squads, the Wildcats put up four runs in the eighth to reclaim a 16-15 lead. But a leadoff double from Bishop led to him moving to third on a flyout and taking home with the tying run on a wild pitch to bring things back to 16-all.
Romero's heroics set up a dramatic ninth inning as ASU took advantage of a poor defense from the Wildcats, loading the bases with no hits and two outs in the inning to set the table for Williams. The cleanup hitter did all he could, putting the ball in play and allowing the second Wildcat error of the inning seal the deal in walk-off fashion.
After this weekend, ASU now moves to 25-1 on the season and 8-1 in Pac-12 play. The Sun Devils have a midweek home game on Tuesday against Long Beach State at 6:30 p.m. Arizona time that will be streamed on the ASU Live Stream through Pac-12 Plus.
Spencer Torkelson, Alika Williams and Lyle Lin all hit home runs on a day where offense was at a premium while pitching and defense were not.
Both teams combined for eight errors – four apiece – but none bigger than the final one of the game as the Arizona shortstop booted a ball with the bases loaded and two outs in bottom of the ninth on a Williams ground ball, allowing Drew Swift to score for ASU's third walk-off victory of the season.
The Sun Devils drew 15 walks in the contest – a season-high, the most by any Pac-12 team in a game this season and tied for the third-most in program history. The two squads combined for 29 total hits and 19 stranded batters.
Sam Romero again proved to be the hero of the pitching rotation, returning to the mound less than 24 hours after earning a save in ASU's win on Saturday to earn the victory on Sunday. With the game knotted at 16-16 in the ninth inning, Romero was tasked with facing the heart of the potent Arizona State order, which had combined for seventh hits and 10 runs already on the afternoon. The senior vet responded in kind with a scoreless frame – just the third scoreless frame for the Wildcats in the game - to give the Devils a chance to walk it off in the ninth.
For the Sun Devil offense, Trevor Hauver went 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs and two doubles. Hunter Bishop drew four walks and scored four runs in the effort, also notching a double and swiping a bag. Williams was 2-for-6 with a team-best three RBIs while also twice putting the ball into play and forcing Arizona errors that also scored runs – including the final run of the contest.
The Wildcats pounced on the scoreboard first today, bringing in four runs in the first inning. Facing the largest deficit it has faced all season, the Sun Devils responded back by scoring three runs themselves in the bottom half of the inning to get back within one.
Arizona countered with a hit a three-run homer in the next inning to go up by four runs again, but Spencer Torkelson and the Sun Devils retaliated with a two-run home run in the bottom of the frame to get back within 7-5.
Arizona State tied the game in the third on two-RBI single from Hauver, but Arizona quickly retook the lead in the fourth thanks to some shoddy ASU defense to make it 9-7. Against, the Sun Devils were up to task as Alika Williams' second homer of the year, a two-run shot, brought the game even at 9-9.
Again, Arizona tacked on two more in the fifth before ASU finally took its first lead of the game in the bottom of the fifth with four runs, capped by Lyle Lin's two-run shot.
Arizona got one back in the sixth but ASU netted two in the same frame to increase its lead to 15-12.
After a scoreless seventh inning from both squads, the Wildcats put up four runs in the eighth to reclaim a 16-15 lead. But a leadoff double from Bishop led to him moving to third on a flyout and taking home with the tying run on a wild pitch to bring things back to 16-all.
Romero's heroics set up a dramatic ninth inning as ASU took advantage of a poor defense from the Wildcats, loading the bases with no hits and two outs in the inning to set the table for Williams. The cleanup hitter did all he could, putting the ball in play and allowing the second Wildcat error of the inning seal the deal in walk-off fashion.
After this weekend, ASU now moves to 25-1 on the season and 8-1 in Pac-12 play. The Sun Devils have a midweek home game on Tuesday against Long Beach State at 6:30 p.m. Arizona time that will be streamed on the ASU Live Stream through Pac-12 Plus.