The Washington Huskies had been riding high after winning 4 of their last 5 games, but coach Jason Kelly’s team couldn’t continue their winning ways, falling 11-7 to the Arizona State Sun Devils despite hitting 4 home runs.
The Huskies fell behind 4-0 in the first inning after 4 unearned runs came across, two coming on a home run from left field Kein Vu. Third baseman Sam DeCarlo responded with a two-run homer of his own in the fifth inning, but the Sun Devils extended their lead to 5-2 in the bottom of the frame.
Shortstop Cam Clayton and right fielder Braeden Terry each hit a solo home run in the sixth inning to cut the deficit to one run before Washington tied the game in the ninth on an RBI single from Dylan Osborne.
First baseman Jeter Ybarra gave the Huskies their first lead of the day in the tenth inning with a two-run home run, but then disaster struck in the bottom of the inning.
JETER TO THE MOON AND THE DAWGS LEAD!!!
📺 Pac-12 Arizona
💻 https://t.co/pfofOvKtXd pic.twitter.com/H4y8v6a2pU— Washington Baseball (@UW_Baseball) May 4, 2024
Reliever Grant Cunningham, who took the loss to fall to 3-3 on the season, allowed 3 extra base hits in the inning, including 2 triples as Arizona State pulled even. Following two intentional walks, Nick McLain stepped to the plate and blasted a walk-off grand slam.
Cunningham allowed 5 hits, 4 walks, and 6 earned runs over 1 2/3 innings, while Sean Fitzpatrick earned the win for the Sun Devils after working the final 2/3 of the tenth inning.
The loss pushes the Huskies to 17-21-1 on the season and 8-14 against Pac-12 opponents, while the Sun Devils improved to 25-22 overall and 13-12 in conference play. The two teams will meet again for the second installment of their three-game series on Saturday evening at 6:30.