Arizona defeated Houston 10-6 on Sunday to clinch a series victory. It wasn’t easy. But that’s OK. Tight ballgames like this one and the UA’s win at Texas last Tuesday are helping the Wildcats learn who they are and what they can become.
“Experience is your best teacher and your best coach,” Arizona coach Jay Johnson said. “I think we’re responding in a good manner in most of these close games. We did not (Saturday) night; it was a really tough and disappointing loss. But I think we handled today the right way.
“To come out on top in a game that’s tied late is a good sign for our team, and a lot of guys contributed to that.”
The game was tied 4-4 through six innings before the Wildcats busted it open with a five-run seventh. The Cougars had the tying run on deck in the ninth before the Cats put them away to the delight of an announced crowd of 1,789 at Hi Corbett Field.
Sophomore first baseman Branden Boissiere sparked the offense, going 3 for 5 with three RBIs. Senior right-hander Preston Price notched his first victory of the season, striking out two batters in 1 1/3 hitless innings out of the bullpen.
Arizona (10-5) notched its second series victory of the season in as many tries. The Wildcats enter a non-conference showdown at No. 8 Arizona State on Tuesday having won three of their past four. They have yet to lose two games in a row.
“I think that’s a good sign for these guys,” Johnson said. “We’re really working hard at getting them to stay present (and) focus on the task at hand. It’s a lot easier said than done.”
Arizona lost the middle game of the series 3-1 Saturday night. The Wildcats had 19 baserunners, left 13 on and batted 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position.
Like Saturday, Arizona again took the lead in the first inning, this time scoring twice, before stalling. The Wildcats trailed 4-3 entering the bottom of the sixth, when Dayton Dooney drove in the tying run with a line-drive single to right.
It was a big moment for the sophomore DH, who entered Sunday batting .139. Dooney earned Freshman All-American accolades in 2019, when he hit .323 with 10 home runs.
The RBI single was Dooney’s lone hit in five at-bats, but Johnson is hopeful it will get Dooney going.
“We had a good talk today before the game,” Johnson said. “I wouldn’t call it starting from scratch or starting over, but just try to make each at-bat its own entity. He is going to be a big part of our success moving forward this year and in future years. We know how capable he is.”
Arizona finally gained separation in the seventh. Austin Wells bookended the inning with walks — the first igniting the rally, the second driving in the Wildcats’ fifth run of the frame. Boissiere provided the go-ahead RBI with a single on a 3-2 pitch off left-hander Tristen Bayless, who had been brought in to face the left-handed batter.
“I was just trying to get a good pitch to hit,” said Boissiere, who has an eight-game hitting streak and raised his average to .327. “Coming into the at-bat, I knew that I was going to get a lot of off-speed pitches.
“So I was just kind of sitting (on) that and just trying to stay to the middle of the field and not do too much. And that’s what I did. I shortened up with two strikes and got that nice little hit.”
The other runs in the seventh came less conventionally — two via walks, two via hit-by-pitches.
Price’s scoreless frame in the seventh kept the game tied and positioned Arizona to take the lead. Price allowed only earned run in 4 2/3 innings across three appearances against Texas and Houston.
“What an awesome week,” Johnson said. “It was kind of tough to take him out. But we felt like we’ve gotta keep him healthy and keep him moving so he can come in in as many games as possible and do what he’s done.”
Arizona didn’t use fellow right-hander Vince Vannelle over the weekend, and that could put Vannelle in line to start at ASU. Vannelle threw a career-high 85 pitches in a longer-than-expected relief appearance against Texas. He has been the Wildcats’ most effective pitcher (1.35 ERA, 20 strikeouts in 13 1/3 innings).
The Sun Devils (13-4) swept Fresno State over the weekend and have won five in a row.
“It’s a good challenge for us,” Boissiere said. “It’ll help us see where we’re at. But I think we’re just looking at it as any other game, going in there with the mentality to fight and battle with each other and just really make it hard for them to win.”
Inside pitch
• The start of Sunday’s game was delayed by an hour because of rain. The rain returned briefly in the top of the fourth inning.
• The ASU game could be in jeopardy because of inclement weather. Johnson said it could be rescheduled for next week, when neither team has a midweek game.
• UA left-hander Blake Peyton has allowed two hits in 8 1/3 innings. Both are home runs. Brad Burckel‘s solo blast in the sixth gave Houston a 4-3 lead.
• Right-hander Davis Vainer, a graduate transfer from Alabama, made his UA debut. Vainer, who had been out because of injury, relieved Gil Luna in the ninth inning and got the final three outs. Johnson said Vainer met him “in the parking lot” upon the team’s return from Texas on Wednesday, requesting to pitch this weekend.
• UA reached double figures in runs for sixth time this season. All six have come at Hi Corbett.
• Houston used eight pitchers — four righties and four lefties. They combined to throw 187 pitches in eight innings.
