Arizona State Sun Devils lost a narrowly decided 5-4 game to the TCU Horned Frogs on the first day of the Big 12 Conference on Friday, March 13, 2026, at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.
Arizona State opened the first inning with the first strike by PJ Moutzouridis, who threw his first home run of the season, thus putting the Sun Devils at an early advantage, and thus pumped the crowd at home.
TCU pitching slows Arizona State offense
Following the initial warm-up, the TCU pitching crew relaxed and dominated a large part of the match. Starting pitcher Mason Brassfield helped contain Arizona State's offensive output through the middle innings.
The Horned Frogs went on to gain ground in the latter part of the game. Colton Griffin also came through in the eighth inning with a two-run single that put TCU in the lead 53.
Dramatic final inning
In the ninth, Arizona State tried to make a final charge. Beckett Zavorek, a runner who has one on first, sent a fly ball in shallow left field, which resulted in a possible game-tying play.
Griffin, however, caught it and threw a hard shot to home plate. The shortstop trying to tag up was declared out, making an outsourced game-ending double play, which won TCU the game.
Key performances and notes
Pitching was also good in both teams. Arizona State pitchers had the 11th strikeout double-digit game of the season, indicating the highest number of staff strikeouts in a conference game since 2019. TCU had 18 strikeouts, its highest number in a conference game since that time.
Sam Myers, a freshman, also hit in five consecutive games during the game.
What’s next
The Arizona State and TCU series still goes on, and the next match will take place on Saturday, March 14, at 6:35 p.m. MST, at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.