When Drew Swift made a leaping grab to quiet UCLA’s leadoff batter in the 1st, it seemed like the Arizona State Sun Devils (32-18, 16-12 Pac-12) held all the momentum to start Thursday night’s matchup versus the UCLA Bruins (33-18, 16-12 Pac-12).

That was until Tyler Thornton, in his 13th start of the year, issued a walk to the next batter. Then allowed a single. Then a double, and then a home run. The Bruins’ 4-0 lead in the 1st inning exploded into a 21-9 loss, tying the Sun Devils’ largest margin of defeat against the Bruins since at least 1999.

UCLA hit through the lineup, seven times in total, highlighted by JT Schwartz’s two doubles and one single. Prior to his exit in the 3rd inning, Thornton allowed seven runs (five earned) in 15 batters.

“It’s been a bit of an up-and-down year for him,” Tracy Smith said of his starter. "I was more disappointed in how we played defensively... we're better than that." With the decision, Thornton’s record falls to 2-4 on the year.

Arizona State tallied three errors on defense, as the Bruins collected 18 hits Thursday night. It could have been worse, though: the Bruins stranded 11 runners on base.

"We got the result we deserved," Smith noted. "We didn't play defense (and) didn't pitch well." The defensive and pitching woes were only emphasized by poor offensive production from the Sun Devils, who scored four runs on seven hits through the first eight innings.

Five of ASU’s runs were scored in the 9th inning, as the other four runs were scored in the middle three frames. Sean McLain gave (the remaining) fans a jolt in the bottom of the 9th, launching his 7th home run of the year over the fence, thinning the lead to a mere 12 runs. It wasn’t enough.

Ethan Long, whom the Sun Devils have relied on as a catalyst for the team’s offense, was uncharacteristically quiet. Long went hitless, striking out twice and walking once.

Nate Baez picked up some of the slack, with two RBI, a single, and a home run. But even the runs Baez contributed to the cause would pale in comparison to the Bruins’ 21 runs. Smith added that fans will likely see more of Baez behind the plate going into the postseason.

Baez and Hunter Haas were the only Sun Devils to collect more than one hit, as both picked up two.

The Bruins scored the most runs by an away team on ASU’s diamond since USC defeated ASU 31-9 to conclude the 2016 season.

It was also the second time this season the Bruins have scored 20 runs this year; the first came in a 20-0 win over Utah in April. Thursday night marked the third time in the past decade that UCLA has tallied 20 or more runs in one game.

"All we can control is first pitch tomorrow night," Smith concluded. "That's what we're focused on."

First pitch of game two versus UCLA will be Friday night, at 6:05 pm MST, broadcast on Pac-12 Networks.