Sun Devils batter Wildcats in Territorial Cup Series opener

Don’t tell anyone in the Arizona State clubhouse that midweek games mean less, especially against their biggest rival.

With conference play opening this weekend, the Sun Devils welcomed the Wildcats to Phoenix Municipal Stadium on Tuesday night and sent them packing back to Tucson on the short end of a 10-4 decision.

The offense got out to a slow start coming off 29 runs on Sunday against Loyola Marymount, scraping across a single run in the first after loading the bases with nobody out. Arizona tied it up a half inning later with situational hitting and smart baserunning, giving the 4,678 in attendance a 1-1 tie into the bottom of the 4th. What followed was something that Sun Devil fans have grown accustomed to seeing this season.

Dean Toigo got things rolling in the 4th with a 2-run home run following a leadoff single by Austen Roellig. Landon Hairston then capped off the inning with a 2-run home run of his own, scoring Beckett Zavorek who doubled home Dominic Smaldino between the home runs. It marked the 13th time this season that the Sun Devils have scored at least 5 runs in an inning this season, showing that anyone anywhere in the order can be the spark that ignites a rally.

On the pitching side of things, Colin Linder took the ball with a solid 2 innings of 1-run ball, followed by 3 innings of 1-hit ball from Taylor Penn. Jaden Alba faced adversity to open the 5th inning, and Sean Fitzpatrick entered after a 3-run home run brought the Wildcats to within 2. All he did was throw 3 innings of 1-hit shutout ball while striking out 4 batters for the longest outing of his career, solidifying Coach Bloomquist’s confidence that he can give Sean the ball in any situation out of the bullpen.

Single runs in the 6th and 7th gave Fitzpatrick a cushion to defend, with the clinching knock coming off the bat of Austen Roellig. One of three Sun Devils with a multi-hit game, Roellig’s single in the 8th inning gave him a team-leading 3 RBI night. Derek Schaefer was summoned for the 9th, striking out two and stranding runners on 1st and 2nd to secure the 10-4 victory.

The power surge in the 4th inning set the tone to allow small ball to take over the rest of the way. Arizona State went 5-for-13 with runners in scoring position, and were successful in three of four stolen base attempts. Only Garrett Michel’s steal attempt turned pickoff was unsuccessful, something that Coach Bloomquist wore on his sleeve in his postgame comments. The absence of Nu’u Contrades will be something to contend with in the coming games, but in the first of five games this season against their in-state rivals, the rest of the roster more than picked up the slack.

Now carrying a 12-4 record, the Sun Devils turn to their upcoming series to open Big 12 Conference play, hosting preseason favorite TCU in a three game weekend series. All three games will air on ESPN+ (subscription required); Friday and Saturday first pitch coming at 6:35pm with the usual Sunday matinee at 1:05pm.