ASU Baseball drops series finale to No. 3 OSU, 4-3
The 20th-ranked Arizona State University baseball team could not convert on late opportunities and dropped its series finale against No. 3 Oregon State, 4-3, on March 24, at Goss Stadium in Corvallis, Ore.
The Sun Devils (13-7-1, 2-4) put six runners in scoring position and left eight on base over the final four innings. Right fielder Trever Allen went 3-for-4 and catcher Max Rossiterrecorded a pair of hits, including a double off the left-field wall in the seventh inning.
Right-hander Alex Blackford did not allow a hit nor a run in 3 1/3 innings, and left-handerMatt Dunbar threw a perfect eighth to hold the Beavers (21-2, 5-1) scoreless over the final four frames.
The Beavers took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on three singles, but ASU countered in the top of the following frame with consecutive base hits by Allen and designated hitter Nate Causey, and an RBI fielder's choice by shortstop Drew Stankiewiczto tie it at one run apiece.
ASU conceded three runs in the fourth inning on four walks, a hit batter and a base hit to fall behind by three, 4-1, but the Devils once again answered in the top of the following frame. They loaded the bases with no outs in the fifth and plated a pair of runs on a dropped foul ball and an RBI walk to cut the deficit to two, 4-3.
Starting left-hander Adam McCreery (1-3) took the loss and was replaced with one out in the fourth inning after surrendering four runs on four hits and three walks in three 1/3 innings.
Right-hander Mark Lambson faced three batters in the fourth inning and walked two to go with a sacrifice fly before Blackford took over with two outs.
Beavers starting left-hander Ben Wetzler allowed three runs on five hits and three walks in four 1/3 innings, but reliever Max Engelbrekt (3-0) secured his third win of the year after throwing three 1/3 scoreless frames.
OSU closer Scot Schultz (5) gave up one hit over the final one 1/3 innings to collect his fifth save of the season.
Up Next:
The Sun Devils host No. 11 UCLA for a three-game series March 28-30 at the Packard Stadium. First pitch on Thursday and Friday is at 6:30 p.m., and Saturday's game will begin at 12:30 p.m. All three games can be heard on The FAN AM 1060 or through the All-Access player on thesundevils.com. Fans can also follow the team on Twitter at @ASU_Baseball for live scoring and updates from the weekend, and check www.thesundevils.com for stats, notes and more.
Game Notes:
Head coach Tim Esmay moved to 38-29 against ranked teams...neither team scored more than one run in a single inning until the fourth inning of the third game...the teams combined for 18 walks in the game and five hit batters.