Power arms earn Baseball a win over Omaha in season opener

Turning point
After the Mavericks tied the score at one in the top of the fifth, the Sun Devil bats came alive in the bottom half of the inning to take a 3-1 lead. Michel led off with a double and Moutzouridis followed up with a single to put Michel at third. A sac fly from Brody Briggs drove home Michel, and a Landon Hairston single scored Moutzouridis, giving Arizona State the two-run advantage.

Big moment
In the top of the eighth, Omaha threatened with a bases loaded, no outs situation, but the Sun Devil defense locked in to limit the damage and maintain the lead. A fielder’s choice groundout picked up the first out of the inning and allowed one run to score, but Overbay was able to induce an inning-ending double play that kept Arizona State ahead 4-2. 

Final straw
After working through the eighth inning jam, Arizona State had a big inning to put the game out of reach. Contrades reached on a hit by pitch with one out, then advanced to second on a single from Dominic Smaldino. A groundout moved both of the runners into scoring position, and Moutzouridis drove in Contrades with an RBI-single. Then, a double steal scored Smaldino and moved Moutzouridis to third, before Briggs singled in another run, giving the Devils the 7-2 lead and effectively putting the game away.   

Inning by inning
First inning
Cole Carlon took the mound for the Sun Devils to kick off the 2026 season, getting two quick groundouts and a flyout for the scoreless first inning. 

The Sun Devils bats were quiet to start the game, going down in order. 

Second inning
Carlon produced another scoreless inning, getting a groundout and back to back strikeouts to close out the frame.

Nu’u Contrades got the Sun Devils going in the bottom half of the inning with a single before stealing second base. Shortly after, Contrades stole another base before scoring on an error. PJ Moutzouridis picked up a hit of his own, but got thrown out trying to stretch it into a double to end the inning. 

Third inning
Carlon continued his scoreless start, inducing two groundouts and a flyout to keep the Sun Devils up 1-0.

Arizona State went down scoreless again, as Landon Hairston roped a double into left field, but was left stranded at second. 

Fourth inning
Carlon worked another scoreless inning, leaving a runner at first.

Contrades got on base first for the Sun Devils in the fourth after reaching on a walk, but was unable to capitalize as the inning quickly ended on a double play.

Fifth inning
Carlon got a quick first out before surrendering a solo home run for Omaha’s first score of the game. However, Carlon was able to settle in and retire the next two batters via flyout and strikeout to keep the score tied 1-1.

The Sun Devil bats got to work in the bottom half of the inning, with back-to-back hits to open the frame, followed by a sac fly to put the Devils up 2-1. A groundout moved Moutzouridis into scoring position, and Hairston drove him in with an RBI single to make it 3-1. A walk and few wild pitches put Hairston and Roellig at second and third, but Dean Toigo flew out to deep right field to end the inning.

That's going to do it for @ColeCarlon.

You'll take these numbers on Opening Night.

Just need some runs to back him up. pic.twitter.com/MyseNo0T31

— Sun Devil Baseball (@ASU_Baseball) February 14, 2026

Sixth inning
Alex Overbay took over on the mound to start the sixth. After walking a batter to first, the Sun Devils worked a double play to end the frame.

Contrades got the Sun Devils going in the sixth, reaching on a double before advancing to third and scoring on an RBI single from Garrett Michel. Shortly after, Michel was left stranded at first, ending the inning with Arizona State up 4-1.

Seventh inning
Omaha started the inning off with a pair of batters reaching on base early in the frame. Overbay then struck out a batter for the second out of the inning, before Omaha reached on an error, loading the bases. Arizona State was able to leave the runners stranded and scoreless with a fly out to right field.

The Sun Devils were unable to get anything going in the bottom of the seventh, with the score staying at 4-1. 

Eigth inning
The Mavericks got going quickly in the top of the inning, with the first three batters reaching on singles. With the bases loaded, Omaha scored on a fielder’s choice. The Sun Devils were able to get out of the jam with a double play, leading 4-2.

After a groundout to open the inning, Contrades was hit by a pitch and Toigo singled into center to put runners at first and second. A groundout from Michel moved the runners into scoring position, and a single from Moutzouridis drove in Contrades to extend the Devils’ lead to 5-2. A double steal scored another, and Brody Briggs tacked on a single of his own to make it 7-2. A pop out to second ended the inning to send the game to ninth. 

Ninth inning
Derek Schaefer came in for relief at the top of the ninth, closing out the game without a hit.

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Sun Devil Baseball (@asu_baseball)

Quotables

Head Coach Willie Bloomquist
Opening Statement
"It's a win, which is always great. The offense took a minute to get going. We were able to push a few across there late. Happy with the way Cole (Carlon) threw the ball and (Alex) Overbay threw it real well, was able to make some big pitches when he had to and (Derek) Schaefer did a great job there. Two walks on the night for the pitching staff was great, very efficient. Cole did a good job getting through five, which was more than I was expecting. I was hoping to get him through four, but his pitch count was still pretty manageable going into the fifth, so we let him go one more, which I was happy to get him through five and get Overbay in there, and he did his job. Had some tough luck with some infield hits there. They squared a few balls up there in the eighth inning, but he was able to work his way out of it. We didn't turn that double play that we probably should have, and still were able to get an out, and then he was able to get out of it, which was good. That was the one dicey moment there in the eighth but we came back and scored three of that bottom half, which was nice and gave us a little breathing room.”

On the message to the team after the win
“Opening Day, opening day win, they're supposed to be excited and happy. It's college baseball. You got to enjoy the wins. It's tough to win games in college. So I'm happy that these guys are excited, and it's a lot of new faces, but they've meshed well and gelled well together, and the fact that they're celebrating is big. And every time we win a game, I want those guys to feel good about it and celebrate, and then turn the page and get ready for tomorrow, because we got to sleep fast and be ready to go again.”

On Nu'u Contrades' big game
“Well, Nu’u is a special talent. I said that when he was a freshman and coming into his sophomore year that he missed, when he's right, he's our best player. Most dynamic player. Can hit for power, can hit for average, can run, can play defense. So it's nice to see him back healthy again and giving our offense, just our whole team, a shot in the arm, which he's capable of doing. And with everything he's been through, the adversity he's been through, that's kind of why his teammates respect the heck out of him. I respect the heck out of him, and it's why he was named team captain, because he's earned it.”

On the big crowd supporting the team
“We love it. It's great to have fans out here. That's our biggest recruiting tool, having next to 4,000 people here on opening night. Hopefully it'll be a little warmer tomorrow. We get more fans in the stands this weekend, and just carry that momentum throughout the season. College baseball is awesome to watch and fun to be a part of, and I know Spring Training is getting ready to start, but this is meaningful baseball. Every game is a playoff game for these guys and for our program. So we're not going out there, pulling our guys out in the third and getting them one at bat and easing them into this. We're going full throttle, because every game is important. So for the people in the Valley that are coming to town and people that are here, this is meaningful baseball, and it's fun up-tempo baseball, and the more fans that come, the better it is for us. For our program, we set an attendance record last year. We'd like to do it again this year."

Junior pitcher Cole Carlon
On his first Friday start
“I was really excited. I've been waiting a whole week since my last in our squad, and it was just really good to be able to get out there against another team and just be able to compete, not just with everyone on our team in the same dugout and just being able to go after someone else in different jerseys. It was a lot of fun. I couldn't have scripted any better, so it was great.”

On what was working during his performance
“I'm just trying to attack the hitter, keep it in the zone. I could go up there and try to chuck it as hard as I can every time and I won't have a good result. So I think just staying in my process and being able to feel where I'm at and just stay over the white part of the plate.”

Redshirt junior infielder Nu'u Contrades
On returning to play after being injured
"It felt awesome. Everyone's been frothing at the mouth to get back and play someone in a different uniform. It was just an electric atmosphere. The fans brought the energy, so it was just awesome.”

On returning to play after being injured
"It felt awesome. Everyone's been frothing at the mouth to get back and play someone in a different uniform. It was just an electric atmosphere. The fans brought the energy, so it was just awesome.”

On setting the tone with his baserunning
“That was kind of our game plan going in. We're gonna try and cause havoc in any way possible. (Head Coach Willie Bloomquist) Bloomy gave me the green light, so I wanted to take advantage of it.”

Junior infielder PJ Moutzouridis
On how it felt playing his first game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium
"It was awesome. When you're playing with a coaching staff like we have and the boys that we have on our team, it's hard to not play hard for each other. I'm extremely blessed that I'm here and I'm glad that I get it back on my boys and my boys get it back on me.”

On the coaching staff's infulence on their approach at the plate
“100 percent, especially on a night like this when the wind's not really blowing out and then homers aren't really carrying. It's more staying low line drive and causing chaos on the base paths. So as long as we kept doing that and putting pressure on them, it's a good spot for us.”

Up Next 
Arizona State returns to the diamond tomorrow for game two of the series with Omaha. The Sun Devils and Mavericks matchup on 1:05 PM MST with coverage available on ESPN+.

Sun Devil Baseball on Social
Get an inside look at the Sun Devil Baseball program by following their Instagram (@asu_baseball), X/Twitter (@ASU_Baseball), and Facebook (facebook.com/SunDevilBaseball) accounts. For the latest information on Sun Devil Baseball, visit sundevils.com/sports/mens/baseball.