Sun Devil Baseball Falls to #2 Texas in Austin Regional

AUSTIN – Sun Devil Baseball dropped the winner's bracket game in the Austin Regional, falling to second-ranked Texas, 10-3, on Saturday evening.
 
Nate Baez had a solid day at the plate for the Devils, recording two of the team's four hits, including a two-run homer in the top of the seventh – his seventh in the last 13 games. Hunter Haas also added a pair of hits and two runs. 
 
A three-hour rain delay in the early elimination game pushed the start time for the contest back two hours and the Sun Devils struggled to find a groove from the onset.
 
Pitchers struggled with control all evening, walking eight Longhorn batters and hitting three with two wild pitches. Texas scored three runs in the bottom of the third without recording a hit in the inning and never looked back.
 
ASU's best opportunity in the game came while trailing 5-0 in the top of the fifth. ASU loaded the bases with one out but were only able to manage a run to get within 5-1. Texas scored three in the bottom of the sixth with two outs to effectively put the game away.
 
The Sun Devils did shake off some early-game jitters on the defensive side, turning two more double plays to give them a nation-leading 60 on the year. The Devils also stranded 11 Longhorn baserunners on the day after being forced to go to the bullpen in the third inning. 
 
ASU will look to stave off elimination on Sunday afternoon against Fairfield with a 1 p.m. first pitch in Austin (11 a.m. Arizona time). The game will be available on ESPN3 and over the airwaves at 1060 AM KDUS in Phoenix. 
 
With a win, ASU would advance to take on Texas again tomorrow evening at 8 p.m. locally/6 p.m. AZT on ESPNU. The Devils would have to win that game to force an if necessary game on Monday.