Under the brisk cloud cover of an overcast day in Provo, Arizona State took the field to face BYU on a Tuesday morning after their original dance with the Cougars on Monday was canceled to inclement weather. The Sun Devils, who suffered a walk-off loss to the Utah Utes on Sunday, looked to redeem themselves before heading back to the sunshine of Tempe.
Instead, they met strong resistance out of the gate as the Cougars jumped out to a four-run lead in the first inning, a deficit that they fought hard to equalize and overcome, but couldn’t find a way to do so, as they dropped the contest 8-5.
Freshman righty Jared Glenn got the nod on the bump for ASU, hoping for a strong outing to set the tone after three innings of one-run ball against the Utes on Saturday. Instead, the freshman was in for a troublesome early outing.
The Cougars were picky with Glenn’s pitches early, racking up baserunners, via a walk and hit-by-pitch while taking advantage of a passed ball that scooted by redshirt senior catcher Sam Ferri. BYU junior outfielder, who was highlighted in the pre-game broadcast for his ability to drive in runs, met expectations as he doubled to right-center field, scoring both baserunners.
The Cougars continued to pick on Glenn in the first, as Gambill scored on a single up the middle. The Sun Devil pitcher hit another batter before striking out the next. He then gave up another RBI double and walk before escaping the frame as the Cougars went all the way around the lineup.
In his second matchup with Glenn in the second inning, Gambill crushed a 1-1 pitch beyond the right field wall into the trees in Provo.
Glenn’s day ended in the third after two innings pitched, four hits allowed, five earned runs, three walks, two hit-by-pitches on 67 pitches total.
The Sun Devils stopped the bleeding in the bottom of the third, as Ferri doubled to left-center field and advanced on a groundout, before scoring on a sac fly to left.
However, the Cougars came back for more in the fifth, as the red-hot Gambill homered again, this time against freshman righty Brock Peery, who filled in for Glenn in the third. Aside from Gambill’s second solo shot of the day, Peery threw three innings of decent baseball in relief, allowing four hits while sitting down five via strikeout.
Arizona State wouldn’t score again until the sixth, when things began to heat up at a rapid pace. Redshirt junior left fielder Hunter Jump worked a patient six-pitch walk to get things going for the Sun Devils, while redshirt freshman second baseman Sean McLain followed up with an even more patient seven-pitch walk. With two runners on, the Pac-12 Player of the Week, freshman designated hitter Ethan Long stepped up to the plate.
Across Long’s last five games entering the contest in Provo, the freshman had hit four home runs, including two on the Saturday contest against the Utes. On a 1-1 count, Long turned four dingers into five, cutting the lead to just two runs with one swing of the bat.
ASU was able to work the bases loaded following Long’s bomb to right but stranded all three base runners after redshirt junior shortstop Drew Swift grounded out. A called third strike to freshman third baseman Hunter Haas shortly after Long’s plate appearance, which appeared to be at the numbers left the Sun Devils cringing, slashing any momentum they had in the works.
The Cougars quickly responded to the offensive burst, piecing a leadoff single and double to put runners at the corners with no outs against Peery, who was quickly pulled for redshirt freshman lefty Graham Osman.
Osman’s first opponent in the sixth, senior outfielder Mitch McIntyre singled up the middle to score a run. Sophomore infielder Peyton Cole followed up with a grounder into a double play, but the lead runner scored from third, resetting the Cougars’ four-run cushion.
In the eighth, with freshman Jack Moss on second base, redshirt freshman Nate Baez stepped in to pinch hit for redshirt freshman outfielder Kai Murphy. Baez, with just three hits in his last 11 at-bats heading into the series, needed a hit in the biggest of ways, both for himself and ASU.
On a 3-2 pitch, the eighth of the at-bat, Baez poked a single into center, scoring Moss for his fourth RBI of the season. It would be the final run the Sun Devils would score on the day.
In the ninth, ASU certainly seemed to pile on the pressure, as Swift started the frame with a leadoff single before Jump reached on an error. With one out, Long stepped back in for more. On a 2-2 count, Long swung at a high fastball at the top of the zone and whiffed, taking ASU’s hopes at a comeback victory with him.
Arizona State outhit the Cougars on Tuesday morning, notching 11 to BYU’s nine, but stranded a critical nine base runners in the field as they were unable to cash in on their success at the plate.
The Sun Devils return back to the friendly confines of Phoenix Municipal Stadium for a weekend set against Rhode Island on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 pm MST.
