Six-run 7th inning, Chandler Murphy’s relief work leads Arizona baseball to win at ASU

The last time Chandler Murphy took the mound for Arizona, last Sunday, he allowed four runs in one inning of work in an 18-13 home loss.

You’d never know that happened by what he did on Thursday night in the Wildcats’ 10-5 win at ASU.

The freshman right-hander threw five innings of hitless relief, allowing just two baserunners while striking out eight (including six in a row at one point) to lock down the Sun Devils. The last two of those six consecutive punchouts came immediately after Arizona (17-7, 4-3 Pac-12) scored six runs in the top of the seventh inning to re-take the lead after blowing an early 3-0 edge.

Down 5-4, the UA sent 12 men to the plate in the seventh. Branden Boissiere scored on a wild pitch to the tie game, then Jacob Blas broke out of a 2-for-24 slump with an RBI single for the go-ahead run. Tanner O’Tremba broke things open with a 3-run triple, with the final run coming home on one of three ASU errors in the frame.

The Wildcats scored twice in the first on a 2-run Boissiere double, then went up 3-0 via a squeeze bunt from Nik McCalughry in the third. ASU (15-6, 4-3) put up five in the bottom of the fourth off UA starter Chase Silseth, then Ryan Holgate had an RBI single in the fifth to get the Wildcats within one before the 6-run seventh.

Boissiere and Kobe Kato had three hits apiece, while O’Tremba was 2 for 5 with 3 RBI and both Boissiere and McClaughry drove in two runs.

Arizona and ASU meet again Friday at 6 p.m. PT at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.