With the 2025-26 academic year coming to a close, we are taking a look back on some of the biggest and best moments from the Sun Devil Athletics calendar that our photographers captured from the past two semesters. From field rushes and court storms to record-breaking performances, The State Press captured some of the most exciting memories in stadiums and arenas from the past year.
Football
After a 2024 season that saw ASU win the Big 12 and make the Peach Bowl, expectations were high going into 2025 for Kenny Dillingham's third season. While the Sun Devils didn’t match their record from the previous season, going 8-5, ASU still kept the inferno ignited through a season full of sellouts that ended with a Sun Bowl appearance. Building off of strong home attendance from the season before, the 2025 season was highlighted by two electric home victories: a Friday night win against then-No. 24 TCU on September 26 in ASU’s blackout game and a field rush against Big 12 champions Texas Tech.
Baseball
Making the NCAA Tournament the season before, hopes were high for ASU in Willie Bloomquist’s fifth season at the helm in Tempe. Starting the season 8-0, ASU had a strong start to the season that got the Sun Devils national recognition. Entering the D1Baseball top 25 on March 23, ASU stayed ranked for the rest of the season. The driving force behind ASU’s success was sophomore outfielder Landon Hairston, who had a historic season that has him listed as a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award. Hairston filled the stats sheet with a 1.368 OPS and 81 RBIs, but made waves hitting 28 home runs, a record in Tempe. At the end of the season, ASU finished 39-21, being eliminated in the Lincoln Regional by Ole Miss.
READ MORE: BREAKING: Landon Hairston breaks ASU's single-season home run record
Softball
In her fourth season at the helm, head coach Megan Bartlett and the Sun Devils saw the benefits of consistency and sticking around to build a program. The team went 45-18 overall and secured the Big 12 Championship. Entering the NCAA tournament on a six-game winning streak, ASU dominated regionals, with two mercy-ruled games. After claiming game one of the super regionals over the defending champions, the Texas Longhorns, the Sun Devils ultimately fell in the following two games. Even though ASU is losing their star ace, Kenzie Brown, to the AUSL, Bartlett is optimistic about her 2027 recruiting class and that Arizona State softball is back.
READ MORE: ASU softball falls to defending champs Texas Longhorns in Super Regionals
Women's Basketball
In her first season in Tempe, head coach Molly Miller brought newfound energy to the women's basketball team. Miller opened the season with a 15-game winning streak and finished with a record of 24-11, more than double the wins of the 2024-25 season. The Sun Devils went 9-9 in conference play and dominated on their home court, only dropping two games in the Desert Financial Arena. An exciting season for ASU ended with a 2-point loss to Virginia in the First Four of the NCAA tournament.
READ MORE: ASU women's basketball thrives in first season under new leadership
Men's Basketball
Amid questions about his future with men's basketball, head coach Bobby Hurley failed to rise to the occasion in his 11th season with the Sun Devils. In his final season at the helm, ASU had an overall record of 17-16 and went 7-11 in conference play. The team took home one win in the Big 12 tournament, over Baylor, marking the first time the Sun Devils beat the Bears since 1988. Following their Big 12 trip to Kansas City, the team parted ways with Hurley and would later announce the addition of long-time Saint Mary's head coach, Randy Bennett, to the coaching staff.
READ MORE: BREAKING: ASU to hire Randy Bennett as next men's basketball coach
Hockey
Off the back of a season where ASU went 21-14-2, narrowly missing the NCAA Tournament, heavy roster turnover and injuries made 2025-26 a rocky season for the Sun Devils. With star forwards Cullen Potter and Jack Beck both picking up season-ending injuries, ASU’s season was defined by a six-game losing streak in their absence. Despite finishing the season 14-21-1 and missing out on the conference tournament, it was not all negative for the Sun Devils. Senior forwards Cruz Lucius and Bennett Schimek both shined, picking up 46 and 43 points each, Lucius making the all-conference first team and Schimek making the all-conference second team.
Edited by Caitlin Hawkinson and Natalia Jarrett
Reach the reporters at cjoneil6@asu.edu and aswift10@asu.edu follow @cjojournalism and @alexswiftsports on X.
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Char O’Neil is a junior studying sports journalism with a minor in special events management. This is her third semester with The State Press. She has also reported for AZPreps365, Blaze Radio and Phoenix College Basketball.
