PULLMAN – Sun Devil Baseball dropped a pitcher's duel in the series opener against Washington State on Thursday in a 2-0 defeat in Pullman.
ASU managed just two hits as WSU's Grant Taylor spun a complete-game shutout. Sean McLain and Jacob Tobias were the only two batters to get a knock on the evening.
The Sun Devils got plenty from its pitching and defense, but simply couldn't muster the run support to challenge the Cougars.
Kyle Luckham, on short rest, tossed 5.0 innings with just two runs allowed. Will Levine gave ASU 2.1 scoreless innings of relief and Christian Bodlovich added 0.2 more. ASU played errorless baseball, turning two double plays in the game.
The team will look to even the series tomorrow at 4 p.m. AZT. The game will be available on Pac-12 Washington and over the airwaves on KAZG 1440 AM. NOTABLES
First Inning
The Devils went down quietly in order. ASU returned the favor with a 1-2-3 frame of its own, including a Luckham strikeout and a nice backhanded play by Hunter Haas at third.
Second Inning
It was another quiet frame for the Devils, going down in order. Luckham issued a one-out walk but immediately wiped it off the base path with his 12th double play ball of the season.
Third Inning
ASU got its first baserunner of the game with a leadoff walk from Hunter Haas but he was caught stealing with two outs the WSU starter faced the minimum the first time through the order. Luckham put the Cougars down in order as both teams faced the minimum through three innings.
Fourth Inning
Sean McLain broke up the no-hitter with a one-out single up the middle. A pair of, quite honestly, questionable strike three calls on the the next two matters would eliminate any threat and keep things scoreless for the Devils. WSU got its first hit on the year on a one-out single up the middle as well and a followed it with an RBI double down the left field line for the first run of the game. A two-out RBI single made it 2-0 but Luckham was able to strand runners on the corners.
Fifth Inning
Kai Murphy walked but that was the extent of the ASU action. Luckham struck out the first two batters but a pair of two-out singles put runners on the corners. Will Rogers bailed him out on the next batter, soaring for a leaping grab at the wall in left field so save two runs and get ASU out of the inning.
Sixth Inning
ASU went down on six pitches in the inning. Will Levine entered to spell Luckham and issued a one-out walk before immediately getting out of it with ASU's second double play of the game.
Seventh Inning
Jacob Tobias got a one-out single for ASU's second hit of the night but it immediately went for naught on a 5-4-3 double play. A one-out single, stolen base and a walk put a pair of runners on with two outs by Levine got a strikeout to escape the jam.
Eighth Inning
ASU went down on two strikeouts and a flyout. Levine got the first out of the inning and was spelled by Christian Bodlovich. WSU got a two-out single into the hole at short but a flyout kept ASU within two.
Ninth Inning
There were no late theatrics as ASU went down in order, completing the complete-game shutout.
ASU managed just two hits as WSU's Grant Taylor spun a complete-game shutout. Sean McLain and Jacob Tobias were the only two batters to get a knock on the evening.
The Sun Devils got plenty from its pitching and defense, but simply couldn't muster the run support to challenge the Cougars.
Kyle Luckham, on short rest, tossed 5.0 innings with just two runs allowed. Will Levine gave ASU 2.1 scoreless innings of relief and Christian Bodlovich added 0.2 more. ASU played errorless baseball, turning two double plays in the game.
The team will look to even the series tomorrow at 4 p.m. AZT. The game will be available on Pac-12 Washington and over the airwaves on KAZG 1440 AM. NOTABLES
- Kyle Luckham induced his team-leading 12th double-play ball of the season in the second inning.
- Joe Lampe saw his 21-game hitting streak come to an end, finishing tied for the third-longest at ASU since 2010.
- The two runs allowed by ASU were the fewest in a weekend game since the team's 3-1 win at Oregon State on March 20.
- It was the first time ASU had been held to two hits or less since Washington's Noah Bremer blanked the Devils in a one hit shutout on May 12, 2017.
First Inning
The Devils went down quietly in order. ASU returned the favor with a 1-2-3 frame of its own, including a Luckham strikeout and a nice backhanded play by Hunter Haas at third.
Second Inning
It was another quiet frame for the Devils, going down in order. Luckham issued a one-out walk but immediately wiped it off the base path with his 12th double play ball of the season.
Third Inning
ASU got its first baserunner of the game with a leadoff walk from Hunter Haas but he was caught stealing with two outs the WSU starter faced the minimum the first time through the order. Luckham put the Cougars down in order as both teams faced the minimum through three innings.
Fourth Inning
Sean McLain broke up the no-hitter with a one-out single up the middle. A pair of, quite honestly, questionable strike three calls on the the next two matters would eliminate any threat and keep things scoreless for the Devils. WSU got its first hit on the year on a one-out single up the middle as well and a followed it with an RBI double down the left field line for the first run of the game. A two-out RBI single made it 2-0 but Luckham was able to strand runners on the corners.
Fifth Inning
Kai Murphy walked but that was the extent of the ASU action. Luckham struck out the first two batters but a pair of two-out singles put runners on the corners. Will Rogers bailed him out on the next batter, soaring for a leaping grab at the wall in left field so save two runs and get ASU out of the inning.
Sixth Inning
ASU went down on six pitches in the inning. Will Levine entered to spell Luckham and issued a one-out walk before immediately getting out of it with ASU's second double play of the game.
Seventh Inning
Jacob Tobias got a one-out single for ASU's second hit of the night but it immediately went for naught on a 5-4-3 double play. A one-out single, stolen base and a walk put a pair of runners on with two outs by Levine got a strikeout to escape the jam.
Eighth Inning
ASU went down on two strikeouts and a flyout. Levine got the first out of the inning and was spelled by Christian Bodlovich. WSU got a two-out single into the hole at short but a flyout kept ASU within two.
Ninth Inning
There were no late theatrics as ASU went down in order, completing the complete-game shutout.