Looking to ride the momentum of its 4-2 win over No. 23 UC Irvine, ASU baseball played its second game of the 2025 NCAA Regionals against No. 15 and site host UCLA on Saturday.
Despite a solid pitching performance the night before, the Sun Devils couldn’t keep up with the Bruins' batting. ASU gave up seven runs in the second inning and couldn’t recover, losing 11-5.
Senior right-hander Jack Martinez got the start for the Sun Devils. Martinez has started 14 times, going 6-3 with a 4.76 ERA before Saturday's matchup. However, the Bruins carried over their offensive dominance from their first game against Fresno State with five hits and a grand slam from Roman Martin, all in the second inning, giving them a staggering 7-0 lead.
Redshirt sophomore outfielder Brandon Compton managed to put the Sun Devils on the board in the second with a sacrifice fly, and senior infielder Matt King scored off a double play in the fourth. By then, UCLA had already scored two more and still had a seven-run lead at 9-2.
"We've got to stop the bleeding," head coach Willie Bloomquist said during a broadcast interview. "Hopefully, Max (Arlich) can give us some length here in the middle parts of these innings and put up some zeros, give our offense a chance."
Arlich did his job, with the freshman left-hander allowing one run in 3.1 innings. ASU's offense did not. The Sun Devils couldn't find a single run during Arlich's shift, leaving the score 10-2 when senior right-hander Will Koger came in during the 7th inning.
Sophomore catcher Brody Briggs, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, doubled down the third base line, bringing two players in to make the score 11-5 and trying to will ASU to a comeback – but the effort fell short.
For UCLA, Landon Stump and Ian May's efforts on the mound proved more than enough, with the pitchers combining for five hits and four earned runs in eight innings. Easton Hawk struck out two on the way to the win for the Bruins.
Payton Brennan went 3-5 on the night for the Bruins, including two RBIs and a triple.
ASU will rematch against UC Irvine on June 1 at 3p.m. (6p.m. EDT). This time, both teams will play for their tournament lives, with the winner taking on UCLA in the regional final.
Edited by Jack McCarthy, Henry Smardo and Katrina Michalak.
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Alan is a sophomore studying sports journalism. This is his second semester with The State Press. He has also worked at Blaze Radio.
