What does ASU baseball do for an encore? They follow up a season-worst four-game losing streak with a season-best five-game winning streak.
After blowing a 6-2 lead and trailing 8-7 with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth, redshirt senior outfielder Harris Williams smacked the ball into left-center while pinch-hitting for redshirt senior catcher Trey Newman.
"At the end of the day, a lot of guys contributed," head coach Willie Bloomquist said. "A lot of guys pitched in and did their part. A lot of big moments. We got punched in the mouth and knocked down, but we bounced back. And to me, that's the important part ... They continue to grind and continue to battle."
Williams hit a two-RBI double that propelled the Sun Devils to a 9-8 victory over GCU, continuing the team's winning streak.
"There's really not another experience like it, the rush that you get when you come from behind and you win it in the bottom of the ninth," Williams said. "That's what every little kid dreams of when they're playing Little League, with their dad or playing wiffle ball is the walk-off, ninth-inning hit. There's nothing really like it."
A big third inning gave the Sun Devils an early lead, which they maintained until the top of the seventh inning when GCU's Dustin Crenshaw crushed a grand slam off ASU senior pitcher Hunter Omlid to take an 8-7 lead.
Williams' walk-off propelled the team to a 15-14 record on the season, the first time the team embraced a record over .500 since March 8. The former San Francisco player now has a .309 average and leads the team in most hits at 34 this season.
Senior catcher Josiah Cromwick notched his first two RBIs of the season and sophomore Kien Vu continued his tear at the plate with a pair of hits.
The Sun Devils now face the daunting task of taking on No. 5 Oregon State this weekend before returning to Phoenix to engage in a rematch against the Lopes on Tuesday.
Edited by Vinny DeAngelis, Alysa Horton and Caera Learmonth.
Reach the reporter at atschmi2@asu.edu and follow @ASchmidtSports on X.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on X.
Aaron Schmidt is a sports reporter who covers ASU Baseball and ASU Women’s Golf for The State Press. He previously covered Higley High School football for AZPreps365.
