After the first four games of the season produced high scores and big rallies from Arizona State (3-2), one would expect another offensive outburst Friday night when the Devils hosted Ohio State (3-2) for the first night of a four-game series. Instead, coach Willie Bloomquist’s squad was on the receiving end, as they lost 11-4 to the Buckeyes.
The Sun Devil offense tallied only four runs on five hits in the game – a stark contrast to the first four games of the season, where the Devils scored a combined 47 runs and had more than 10 runs in the first three games.
Ohio State’s starter, Landon Beidelschies proved to be unhittable for the maroon and gold, striking out 7 batters with no walks through seven innings and giving up only one run.
ASU graduate student left fielder Harris Williams took first on a hit by pitch to start the game, stole second, advanced to third on a flyout, and scored on a lineout.
The bats went silent until a Kevin Karstetter triple in the fourth reignited the dugout. The senior third baseman continued his impressive start to the season with his eighth hit in the first five games. However, sophomore center fielder Isaiah Jackson struck out swinging to end the inning. In total, ASU struck out 11 times and looked very overpowered in the batter’s box.
“The kid’s a mid-90 mile an hour lefty,” head coach Willie Bloomquist said about Beidelschies. “I mean, if you don’t take that seriously, then that’s exactly what’s going to happen.”
The Devils built some momentum in the bottom of the eighth when junior catcher Ryan Campos hit a two-out 3-run home run to cut Ohio State’s lead to 4.
In response, Ohio State scored three more runs in the top of the ninth, putting the final nail in ASU’s coffin as Karstetter and Jackson both struck out swinging and sophomore right fielder Kien Vu grounded out to second to end the game.
“Every game is gonna have to be focused and locked in in order to have those results,” junior first baseman Jacob Tobias said regarding the lack of offensive output compared to previous games.
The team’s skipper noticed a difference in the routine compared to previous games.
“I can sense today that they were not as focused as they should have been,” Bloomquist said. “Hitting’s a mentality, and you gotta come with it every day and ready to play.”
The Devils have a chance to even the series on Friday night, as they battle the Buckeyes in game two of the series at Phoenix Municipal Stadium at 6:30 p.m. MST.
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