A team's true identity will always reveal itself in the postseason and for ASU, that sense of self was defined by a consistent inability to deliver with runners in scoring position.
This proved to be the downfall in their opening and closing Lincoln Regional losses to Southeastern Conference stalwart, Ole Miss, which ended the Sun Devils' season.
Both losses came by one run in extra innings, where ASU combined to go 2-18 with runners in scoring position across both contests.
"There are no regrets, and each and every one of them, I'm super proud of them," head coach Willie Bloomquist said per Sun Devil Athletics. "I love each and every one of these guys. Wouldn't change a thing about how they perform and how they played. Certainly, you'd like to come away with the win, but man, these are two heavyweights that went at each other this weekend."
Late Sunday night, the scene felt all too familiar for the Sun Devils. Extra innings, a taxed bullpen and missed opportunities mirrored Friday's loss to Ole Miss.
Junior right-handed pitcher Derek Schaefer started the 10th inning against Ole Miss for his second outing of the day. The Rebels wasted little time drawing a one-out walk, advancing the runner to third on a wild pitch and a single, then plated the winning run with a sacrifice fly to deliver the final blow to ASU's season.
The Sun Devil bullpen turned to some unsung heroes as ASU looked for outs in its fourth game in three days.
Junior pitcher Alex Overbay entered the game with an ERA north of six before delivering 3.1 innings of shutout baseball, maintaining an ASU lead at the time.
Sophomore right-hander Eli Buxton held the fort down late, tossing 2.1 innings of hitless baseball while striking out three to maintain a tie ball game.
Fifth-year outfielder Dean Toigo led the way offensively from the jump, leading off with a home run and driving in three of the four runs scored by the Sun Devil offense.
ASU was without its best player in Golden Spikes semifinalist, sophomore outfielder Landon Hairston, who was ejected in their contest against Nebraska and served a mandatory one-game suspension per NCAA rules for ejections.
The Sun Devils' star flung his bat into the air in frustration after a questionable strike three call. After deliberation and a discussion with Bloomquist, the umpires ejected Hairston from the game.
READ MORE: BREAKING: ASU outfielder Landon Hairston ejected, will serve one game suspension
"Emotions (are) running high," Bloomquist said per Hurrdat Sports. "(Landon Hairston) flipped the bat, probably more disappointed in himself for taking a strike three, but it's disappointing. We do have to control our emotions a little bit better than that in those situations, but on the same token, it's an emotional game. It's an emotional time. I would have liked to have seen a warning right there, rather than the letter of the law being taken."
The Sun Devils overcame the loss of Hairston to eliminate the host Nebraska Cornhuskers with an 11-8 victory. Junior first baseman Dominic Smaldino led the way with two home runs and a grand slam, driving in six total runs.
Graduate pitcher Colby Guy started for the Sun Devils and delivered six innings of stellar baseball, allowing only one run on four hits and striking out seven.
"I really didn't have a plan," Guy said per Sun Devil Athletics. "It's win or go home, you've got to leave everything you’ve got on the field."
ASU began its potential march back from the losers' bracket in emphatic fashion, dominating South Dakota State 17-0 to eliminate them and extend their season into Saturday.
Two grand slams by redshirt junior infielder Nu'u Contrades and redshirt sophomore infielder Austen Roellig led the way for the offensive explosion.
Senior right-handed pitcher Kole Klecker turned in arguably the best outing of his collegiate career in his final appearance, going eight shutout innings, striking out a career-high 13 batters and only allowing five base runners.
The senior native of Arizona left the mound with a smile, helping preserve the Sun Devil's bullpen and season.
"It's win or go home, right?" Klecker said per Sun Devil Athletics. "So there's a little more pressure on this game, and then what we went through earlier this morning with the long one, I knew it wasn't going to be easy."
The opening matchup of the Lincoln Regional for ASU proved to be a thriller late into the Nebraska night.
Fourteen innings of back-and-forth baseball is what it ultimately took for the Rebels to come out on top over the resilient Sun Devils winning 7-6.
Team co-captain Contrades showed his veteran ability, leading the way in his first NCAA tournament game after missing the 2025 tourney due to injury. The Hawaii infielder homered twice, including a game-tying shot in the seventh inning.
"(Contrades is) on my Mount Rushmore of favorites," Bloomquist said per Sun Devil Athletics. "Just a phenomenal kid, and I would take a team full of him. The way he plays, goes about it, the kid's been essentially on one leg the majority of the year, playing and gutting it out."
That ended up being the final runs ASU would put on the board as a deadlock over the next six innings ensued before Ole Miss would win it.
Junior left-hander Cole Carlon struck out nine but gave up six runs in his outing. Junior right-hander Jaden Alba ended up with the loss, but after throwing four innings of high-intense shutout baseball to keep the game tied.
Ultimately, despite fighting tooth and nail all weekend long, the team in the heart of the southeast proved to be just too much for ASU to handle.
"I wish I had more years here," Toigo said regarding his collegiate journey, per Sun Devil Athletics. "Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Every stop I've been at, and there's been a lot, they've been special, but this one's been a little bit sweeter than the rest. This group of guys, the coaching staff, is special. Sucks that it's the way we went out, but we played our guts out. It's pretty incredible."
Dating back to the end of February in the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series, ASU finished 2026 going 1-7 against the nation’s top conference in the SEC. It was a hill the Sun Devils knew they would have to climb on the road to Omaha, but once again, the hill proved to be too steep.
ASU finished the season with its furthest postseason run in a decade, finishing 39-21, third in the Big 12 and a regional finalist.
As the offseason gets underway, answers will eventually emerge. Yet even with optimism surrounding the direction of the program, ASU enters the months ahead facing uncertainty as key contributors depart and the transfer portal reshapes rosters across the country.
Edited by Char O'Neil, Senna James and Ellis Preston.
Reach the reporter at eapache3@asu.edu and follow @EricPachecoasu on X.
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Eric Pacheco is a junior studying sports journalism. This is his second semester with The State Press. He previously served as Editor-in-Chief of the Riverside City College student newspaper Viewpoints.Â
