I’m sure I wasn’t the only college baseball fan on the East Coast who stayed up until 1 a.m. last night watching the Arizona State-Arizona game unfold on GameTracker. When the little green dot that represented Arizona shortstop Bryce Ortega reached third base in the ninth inning, the tension was palpable. But Arizona State lefthander Ike Davis struck out pinch-hitter Matt Pressley and got Jon Gaston to ground out to second base to end the game and preserve No. 1 Arizona State’s 6-5 win over No. 2 Arizona. The game is a nonconference match-up even though both teams are in the Pac-10. Earlier, Davis helped build that lead with a two-run double in the first inning, and partner-in-mashing Brett Wallace went 2-for-2 with a pair of RBIs and two walks. So the Sun Devils are 18-0, the Wildcats are 12-3, and there is no doubt right now who the No. 1 team in the nation should be.

It was another terrific Tuesday in college baseball, even outside the Grand Canyon State. In the Sunshine State, Florida topped rival Florida State 6-1 in front of a McKethan Stadium-record crowd of 5,719 fans. Junior lefthander Stephen Locke threw 5 1/3 innings of shutout ball for the Gators, allowing just four hits. Farther south, Miami pounded Cornell 20-9, and sophomore third baseman Mark Sobolewski tied a Hurricanes record with six hits to go along with five RBIs.

Elsewhere, Central Arkansas upset No. 8 Mississippi in 10 innings. The Rebels have now lost midweek games to Arkansas State, Western Kentucky and Central Arkansas in successive weeks. Clemson, which has lost three straight weekend series, got a big 9-6 win against No. 21 Coastal Carolina, behind a pair of homers by senior catcher Doug Hogan. And on the West Coast, Pepperdine scored nine runs in the first against Cal State Fullerton starter Jason Dovel and reliever Brian Wilson, then cruised to a 13-2 win. The Waves are 14-5 heading into this weekend’s trip to Oregon State.

Finally, Virginia Tech played host to the New York Yankees in an emotional day. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has donated $1 million to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund, and before the game 32 orange balloons were released to commemorate the 32 people killed by a lone gunman last April. It was a magical day for Virginia Tech; be sure to read about it here.