For the second time in three weeks the No. 7 ASU baseball team is going California cruising, this time traveling north to Berkeley to face off against the California Golden Bears.
The Sun Devils (35-7, 3-3 Pac-10) went 1-1 in their two home games between conference series but are just 7-6 in their last 13 contests.
"It's always good to win at home," ASU sophomore catcher Tuffy Gosewisch said after the Sun Devils' 10-2 victory over Grand Canyon on Monday. "A good win at home builds confidence a little bit for going on the road."
The Sun Devils will look to improve their dominating 13-2 road record against California. After this weekend, the Sun Devils are home for two consecutive conference series, first hosting UCLA April 17-19 before Washington State comes to town April 25-27.
Last week, ASU freshman left fielder Travis Buck earned Pac-10 player of the week honors for his series against USC. The left-handed hitter was 8-for-11 with three RBI and also helped gun down a runner at home on a ball hit into the left field corner. Buck is also a candidate for freshman All-American.
University of Arizona: Despite taking two of three games from Miami Ohio last weekend, the Wildcats (24-11, 3-3) dropped out of the top-25 poll, falling from No. 21 to No. 26. UA sophomore Jeff Van Houten won Pac-10 player of the week honors with his performance against the Redhawks. The right fielder was 9-for-13 with eight RBI and his seventh home run. The honor was his second of the season, he also won the award on March 18. Van Houten now leads the club in hitting at a clip of .448.
California: With consecutive come-from-behind victories over UCLA, the Golden Bears (20-15, 6-3) won their third consecutive conference series. Down 9-2 after two innings Sunday, California pitching shut down the Bruins and the offense scored 10 runs over the next five frames to capture a 12-9 victory. Sophomore right-hander Jesse Ingram picked up Pac-10 pitcher of the week honors. The closer had two saves in four innings while striking out five and not allowing a single hit.
Oregon State: The Beavers (15-15, 2-4) avoided a sweep from Washington over the weekend by scoring five times in the final three innings to top the Huskies 6-5 Sunday. Senior first baseman Andy Jarvis was 7-for-13 in the series to raise his batting average to .371, good for third on the team.
Stanford: The Cardinal took sole possession of first place in the Pac-10 with a sweep of Washington State over the weekend. No. 4 Stanford (22-10-9, 7-2) added another victory Tuesday with a win over Santa Clara. Junior left fielder Carlos Quentin had an outstanding night, going 4-for-5 with two home runs and six RBI in a 17-8 blowout. Quentin extended his season-long hitting streak to 20 games.
UCLA: After a letdown against California caused the Bruins to drop the rubber match of their Pac-10 series last weekend, UCLA blew another game Tuesday against No. 11 Long Beach State. The Bruins (17-19, 3-3) led 3-2 in the eighth but could not hang on for the win, allowing three runs in that frame. The Bruins will face rival USC in Pac-10 play this weekend.
USC: In similar fashion to ASU, the Trojans (15-17, 2-4) played just two contests over the last week and a half between Pac-10 series. After beating up on UC Riverside 9-4 last week, the Trojans fell to San Diego 4-3 Tuesday. Freshman catcher Jeff Clement blasted his 15th home run in the win over UC Riverside.
Washington: After taking two of three from Oregon State, the Huskies (21-10, 3-3) embark on a long five-game road trip, starting with three against UA this weekend before two at Kansas State. Last week, junior second baseman Greg Isaacson went 5-for-12 with five runs scored and five RBI against the Beavers.
Washington State: The Cougars (9-23, 1-5) were swept by Stanford despite taking the game all the way to the 11th inning in the series finale Monday. Junior right-hander Aaron MacKenzie pitched 10 strong innings for the Cougars, but the bullpen fell apart in the 11th to spoil MacKenzie's performance.
Reach the reporter at casey.pritchard@asu.edu.
