Devils stymie top offense to take win

FULLERTON, Calif. — Arizona State returned to the NCAA regionals by defusing one of college baseball’s more-potent offenses Friday night.

The Sun Devils combined James McDonald’s hitting, Trevor Williams’ pitching and three unearned runs for a 4-3 win over New Mexico at Cal State-Fullerton’s Goodwin Field.

ASU (36-20-1) will face Cal StateFullerton, which defeated Columbia 4-1 late Friday, tonight at 8.

McDonald hit a two-run home run and drove in three runs, tying a season high. Williams (6-6) broke a personal three-game losing streak with his first win since April 19.

The right-hander stifled a team that entered the regionals leading the NCAA in batting average (.336), on-base percentage (.424) and offense (8.4 runs per game).

“We knew going in that they weren’t going to give away any atbats,” ASU coach Tim Esmay said. “Any guy in their lineup can hurt you.”

Though he hit three batters, walked three and allowed eight hits in 72⁄ innings, Williams frustrated the Lobos (37-21).

“I’d say almost every one of our batters chopped (a pitch) in front of the plate,” said New Mexico’s Mitch Garver, the Mountain West Conference’s co-Player of the Year.

“He did well locating his fastball and working his off-speed to most of our guys,” Garver said. “He’s got good arm action so the ball naturally has sink.”

Williams viewed the regionals as a fresh beginning.

“It’s a new season,” he said. “The team’s given me an opportunity to get back on the mound and erase what happened the past few starts. I didn’t want to let the team down. You turn the dial up that much more.”

McDonald made his first contribution in the bottom the first inning, when his sacrifice fly forced a 1-1 tie. Then in the fifth, McDonald broke a 2-2 tie with his sixth home run of the year — a line drive that hit the orange stripe on top of the outfield fence down the right-field line.

That two-run homer might not have happened if Michael Benjamin did not reach base on shortstop Jared Holley’s error. The Lobos committed three errors, which New Mexico coach Ray Birmingham called “very uncharacteristic of us.”

ASU’s defense, however, kept New Mexico in check. The Sun Devils held a 2-1 lead the fourth when the Lobos put the potential tying run at second base with two out. But Benjamin dived to his right to spear a line drive.

Benjamin made another major play in the fifth. Chase Harris tried to bunt Holley to second base but Benjamin pounced on the bunt and threw to shortstop Drew Stankiewicz to retire Holley.

Harris, who reached on the fielder’s choice, would tie the score by coming home on D.J. Peterson’s sacrifice fly.

In the sixth, NewMexico put runners in scoring position with one out when pinch-hitter John Pustay hit a high chopper to third base. Benjamin jumped to catch the ball and threw to catcher Max Rossiter to get Garver at the plate.

“His plays were game chang-

New Mexico Harris, rf Haggerty, 2b Peterson, 1b Garver, c Campbell, lf Melendez, cf Real, dh Pustay, dh Allbritton, 3b Holley, ss New Mexico Arizona St.

Arizona State 5 2 1 0 Coffman, cf 5 0 1 0 Benjamin, 3b 3 0 1 1 McDonald, 2b 3 1 2 2 Rossiter, c 4 0 2 0 Causey, dh 1 0 0 0 Allen, rf 2 0 0 0 Stankiewicz, ss 1 0 0 0 Dinatale, 1b 3 0 0 0 Peevyhouse, lf 3010 010 020 32 10 41 00 21 13 40 10 30 00 40 10 20 00 30 00 30 00 010 — 00x — 3 4