Once-Beaten ASU Takes Over Top Spot

DURHAM, N.C.Arizona State’s run of perfection finally came to an end at 24-0, but the Sun Devils still won two of three on the road against Oregon to complete their ascent to No. 1 in the Baseball America Top 25 rankings.

The Sun Devils’ path to No. 1 was cleared when Virginia, which held the top spot for the last six weeks, dropped a series for the first time this season on the road at North Carolina State. The Cavaliers fell to No. 4, while Georgia Tech moved up to No. 2 and UCLA, which also had its undefeated streak end against then-No. 19 Stanford but still won the series, reached No. 3. The Cardinal fell to No. 22.

The back half of the rankings saw plenty of shuffling as five teams ranked between Nos. 15 and 25 lost their weekend series. Oregon State and UC Irvine took advantage, both winning conference series on the road to move up to Nos. 17 and 18, respectively.

Only one new squad broke into the rankings this week. Virginia Tech stunned then-No. 4 Florida State on the road to earn the No. 25 spot in the rankings. The Hokies entered the Top 25 for the first time since March 1992.

The staff of Baseball America determines the Top 25 rankings. Records indicated are through games of April 4 and do not include ties.