The last time Arizona State completed a series sweep in a three-game set over any opponent was on April 8th of 2023, when they swept the Washington State Cougars at home.
Almost one year later, ASU picked up its first sweep of the 2024 season and first sweep since then by beating the California Golden Bears 9-6.
It was a rocky first two innings for ASU’s starting pitcher senior left-hander Connor Markl.
Despite some early struggles, Markl worked out of two jams to escape the threat and only allowed two runs to come home. He finished the day giving up only one earned run in five innings of work while striking out six.
After the game, head manager Willie Bloomquist expressed how he was proud of his pitching staff and specifically highlighted Markl’s performance.
“Connor coming up and giving us five innings there was outstanding,” Bloomquist said. “He fell behind early but kept things small.”
Meanwhile, the Sun Devil bats were quiet through the first three innings, as Cal’s starter, junior left-hander Ian May, gave the Golden Bears two scoreless frames.
However, in the fourth, the Sun Devil bats exploded to generate six runs and take a 6-2 lead.
Junior first baseman Jacob Tobias started the scoring for ASU by launching a leadoff home run over the left field wall.
Then, senior designated hitter Eamonn Lance hit a shot over the center field fence to make it back-to-back home runs to start the inning.
Even though the inning seemingly ended with a runner’s interference call for the third out, a reversal to the ruling extended the inning for the Sun Devils and sparked a two-out rally.
The Maroon and Gold ripped off four more runs highlighted by a bases-clearing three RBI double for junior catcher Ryan Campos.
“You never know when a big inning is going to start, so you just keep passing the torch and keep putting together good at-bats,” Bloomquist said. “Ultimately, that six-run inning ended up being the difference in the game.”
In the top of the sixth, the Golden Bears continued the theme of big frames by responding to ASU’s scoring with a four-run inning of their own.
Nonetheless, the Sun Devils were able to hold off Cal with a strong performance from the bullpen and stellar play from sophomore center fielder Kien Vu.
Vu added to the Sun Devil total with the third home run of the day for ASU, as he smacked a moonshot insurance solo home run in the seventh.
Cal threatened in the ninth, putting two runners on and bringing the tying run to the plate.
Yet, it was Vu once again who made a clutch play for the Sun Devils. In the final play of the game, the center fielder laid out to make a diving catch and record the last out to secure the win for ASU.
“I try to make the most of every start,” Vu said. “I just try to lock in each at-bat and swing as hard as I can.”
The sweep could not come at a better time for ASU, with the Sun Devils coming off a recent rough patch, including being swept by Washington State on the road.
The players mentioned how the morale of the team has shot up in a positive direction, with the squad gaining confidence over the past week.
“When you have confidence on your side baseball is fun,” Markl said. “We’re not letting small things get to us, and when we do the small things right it makes it a fun ride.”
The Sun Devils will have to keep this confidence and winning baseball rolling, as they have worked out of an early season hole to even their record at 14-14.
Up next, the Sun Devils will host Grand Canyon University on Tuesday night, before heading on the road to continue Pac-12 play in Corvallis.
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