'We're close': ASU baseball ends 2022 season with loss to Arizona in Pac-12 Tournament

Standing near the visitor's dugout at Scottsdale Stadium, Willie Bloomquist reflected on his first season as head coach of Arizona State's baseball program.

Following an 8-6 loss to Arizona in the Pac-12 Tournament that ended the Sun Devils' 2022 season, he found some silver linings. Yet the former ASU player emphasized that the Sun Devils need to figure out their identity to elevate back into conference and national recognition.

"We're close in the top, but we're also close in the bottom," Bloomquist said. "We've certainly got to get better moving forward and I have to get better as a coach. Now that I've experienced (it), I understand what type of things I have to do a better job at. We'll regroup at the end of the year here and adjust moving forward."

Those changes will include gaining depth and athleticism, but ASU's coach isn't quick to forget how often his squad was contending in games it lost. Tonight was the most recent example, as the Sun Devils held a one-run lead before Wildcats center fielder Mac Bingham fired a three-run triple in the eighth inning to extinguish ASU's hopes at winning the conference tournament and making the Division I Baseball Tournament.

Catcher Ryan Campos led the way for the Sun Devils with four runs-batted-in, two of them on a seventh-inning double that gave ASU its first lead since the third frame. A freshman from Mesa, Campos was one of eight underclassman to start today. Many of them made an impact, including sophomore shortshop Sean McLain and sophomore center fielder Joe Lampe, who each crossed home plate multiple times and combined for three doubles.

Lampe was also the player nearest Bingham's game-leading strike, which went over his head into deep center field. Even though he said he misread the hit and took a step in, Bloomquist highlighted how important Lampe's role was this season and that he "played his guts out."

"This team has no quit," Lampe said. "We showed that throughout this whole game and we played some of our best baseball during this tournament. There were just a couple balls that didn't bounce our way and a couple physical mistakes."

Despite leading the conference with 61 errors, the Sun Devils were nearly flawless early on as Lampe and McLain reached base in the first inning before Campos brought them home on a single. Junior pitcher Adam Tulloch also started strong with four strikeouts.

However, that changed when Arizona catcher Daniel Susac — the Pac-12's second-best hitter with a .365 batting percentage — entered the batter's box in the third inning. He sent a three-run shot over the right field wall, then Wildcats right fielder Tanner O'Tremba notched a one-run homer during the next at-bat.

Tulloch was replaced by sophomore relief pitcher Christian Bodlovich, who gave up another run in the frame to turn a 2-0 lead into a 5-2 deficit.

"Never give in and keep playing," Bloomquist said when asked if he had any lasting lessons for his team from this season. "Keep playing. Keep fighting... Keep grinding and never give in because good things can happen as long as you keep battling."

That's exactly what the Sun Devils did, as Bodlovich rebounded to pitch 2.2 innings, the most of his 2022 season, and record three strikeouts. Senior first baseman Conor Davis recorded a single in the fourth inning — ASU's first hit in multiple frames — and then Campos made a spectacular throw from the plate to sophomore second baseman Nate Baez that halted a Wildcats scoring rally, who were without Susac after he left the game.

An inning later, Lampe scored off a fielding error, while Baez drove in McLain to make it a one-run game. The Sun Devils also started flourishing on the defensive end. There was a double play in the sixth, forcing a groundout on the next play to prevent Arizona second baseman Garen Caulfield from scoring and junior relief pitcher Will Levine allowing just one hit over one inning.

"I give the credit to the players," Bloomquist said. "They're the ones that got to go out and change the mindset and go out and continue to not give in, even though there were plenty of times this year where it felt like we got kicked in the stomach. A lot of adversity, a lot of things went against us, but these guys kept on grinding and kept battling."

The Sun Devils' unwilligness to waver was eventually rewarded when Campos' double in the seventh gave ASU its first lead since the opening frame. Taking advantage of a new pitcher, Wildcats reliever Quinn Flanagan, the catcher sent a shot to center field and turned Scottsdale Stadium into a frenzy. Fans loudly chanted "ASU" as Campos made the "Forks Up" symbol with his hand.

However, it was short-lived as sophomore reliever Brock Peery soon gave up the game-winning triple. Moments before, Bloomquist chose to purposely walk Arizona first baseman Noah Turley, which loaded the bases.

"We're always really positive in there," Campos said. "When we lose a lead there later, it is what it is. We're ready to just get it back in the last inning."

Yet, ASU couldn't. As soon as Baez's grounder hit the glove of Turley, it dropped the Sun Devils to a 26-32 record.

Now, it's back to work in the offseason for Bloomquist, as he looks to usher in the next era of ASU baseball.

"There are a lot of bumps and bruises," Lampe said. "A lot of scratching your heads, but that's how you change a culture in my opinion. You can't just accept what's going on in the past, right? So just changing that mentality to the old ASU way and instilling that in the younger guys, I think that's very important."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ASU baseball ends season with loss to Arizona in Pac-12 Tournament