Arizona State picks up where it left off before rain delay, beats Texas Tech 9-8

A little rain can't stop a Sun Devil.

Arizona State pulled off one of the more unusual series wins Saturday afternoon. After tying things up in the bottom of the seventh and then loading the bases with two outs, the Sun Devils had a chance to blow things wide open against the Red Raiders.

Mother nature had other plans.

The rain, which had been going steady all night, picked up more than ever. The grounds crew, which had worked at various points throughout the night to keep the field playable, finally called it and initiated a rain delay. After about half an hour, the game was postponed until noon Saturday.

When the time came, Arizona State sent Kien Vu, Josiah Cromwick, and Isaiah Jackson out to each base with Kyle Walker in the batter's box. Texas Tech sent out a fresh arm to try and earn the final out, but it didn't work.

Despite Walker getting behind in the count early at 1-2, he took two balls before fouling off another and tightening up the strike zone. Then came ball four, walking in the go-ahead run. Landon Hairston was up next, and he did just about the same thing, drawing out the at-bat until the fourth ball came through.

Just like that, the Sun Devils had gone up by two without putting a single ball in play.

Willie Bloomquist then sent out Cole Carlon, who's been on an absolute heater lately, to pitch the eighth. He did not disappoint, striking out the first two batters and forcing a ground out. Carlon stayed in for the ninth, giving up one run but striking out two more batters to seal the deal and get the save in the process.

The win, as unconventional as it was, put Arizona State back in the series win column after dropping their two most recent series. Now, they have a brief moment of rest before starting Game 3 with an opportunity to sweep the Red Raiders.