Arizona State’s offense picked up where it left off last night, scoring double-digit runs in a 10-9 win over Cal Berkeley. Senior infielder Mario Demera and junior infielder Ryan Campos cashed in with the bases loaded to pave the way to victory for the Sun Devils.
Sophomore infielder Nu’u Contrades continued to deal with an injury, paving the way for Demera to start the first two games of the series against the Golden Bears. Going two for four in Thursday’s game, the third baseman continued his solid performance in the batter’s box for Arizona State.
Demera salvaged ASU’s offense after freshman infielder Ethan Mendoza and sophomore outfielder Isaiah Jackson struck out back-to-back. Batting .172 coming into the contest and slotted eighth in the ASU batting order, the senior provided a much-needed spark.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Demera woke up Phoenix Municipal Stadium with a grand slam over the left-center field fence. Being down 4-2 heading into the inning, the San Francisco transfer put the Sun Devils up 6-5 with one swing of the bat.
“I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself,” Demera said. “We watched the guy (Cal’s pitcher) the last two days and his slider and misses were all down, so I was really just trying to get something up and try to put a good swing on it.”
ASU head coach Willie Bloomquist commented on Demera’s transition to Arizona State.
“He’s going through some adjustments,” Bloomquist said. “But I’m hopeful and it looks like he’s started to get more and more comfortable. With the way our squad is banged up we’re going to need him.”
Campos delivered in both facets of the game. In the second and sixth innings, he gunned down Golden Bear runners. Cal got aggressive on the base paths in the sixth inning, trying to pull off a double steal attempt. The junior was able to get the second out of the inning, eventually escaping with no runs allowed.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, Campos sent a weak line drive directly onto the left field line and landed in fair play. The catcher delivered a bases-clearing three-run double which served as the game-winning hit in the game. The Golden Bears produced a five-run top of the ninth inning and Campos’s insurance runs came through big time in the win.
Arizona State collected their second win of the series and looks to sweep the University of California, Berkeley on Saturday with a 1 p.m. first pitch at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.
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