Three Arizona State players homered and five pitchers allowed a total of four hits as the 21st-ranked ASU baseball team completed a three-game series sweep of USC with an 8-1 win Sunday at Packard Stadium.
James McDonald and Rouric Bridgewater each hit a home run in the second inning and Abe Ruiz added a homer in the eighth as the Sun Devils (23-13, 9-6) tallied eight runs on 12 hits.
Right-hander Darin Gillies (1-3) recorded his first career win after tying his career high with five innings pitched. He allowed one unearned run on three hits while walking one and striking out a pair.
Right-handers Joseph Lopez and Robert Ravago and left-hander Matt Dunbar combined to allow one hit and no walks in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. Right-hander Jake Barrett punctuated a perfect ninth frame with a called strikeout to end the game.
The Trojans (19-4, 5-9) took an early one-run lead in the top of the second inning on an RBI sacrifice bunt after a runner moved into scoring position on an error by Gillies.
ASU responded in the bottom of the second with four runs to take control. McDonald opened the frame with his first career home run, and Bridgewater followed with a homer of his own two batters later. Deven Marrero later drove Drew Stankiewicz home from third on an RBI single before Kasey Coffman scored on a wild pitch. The Devils batted around in the inning.
Three straight hits to start the third inning, highlighted by a two-run single from Bridgewater and a double from Max Rossiter, extended ASU's lead to 6-1.
Ruiz led off the eighth frame with a solo home run, and Bridgewater scored McDonald, who had doubled to left field, with an RBI sacrifice fly as the Devils tacked on a pair of insurance runs.
USC right-hander Ben Mount (1-4) took the loss after giving up four runs, three earned, on five hits in just 1 1/3 innings.
ASU has won 11 straight over USC in Tempe
dating back to 2006. For the first time since 1985, the Devils' football,
men’s basketball and baseball teams swept their home games against the Trojans.
ASU hosts Arizona on April 17 at 6:30 p.m. at Packard Stadium for the first State Farm Territorial Cup Series game of the season, which will be webcast live on FOXSportsArizona.com.
