After struggling for the past few weeks, the USC baseball team has showed some heart and have started to play much better with a series win against SoCal foes Stanford and Loyola Marymount.
The USC Trojans baseball team (13-10, 3-3) is trying to build some momentum after beating Loyola Marymount 4-2 at Page Stadium Tuesday night.
USC jumped on the Lions in the third inning and never looked back. Senior third baseman Kevin Swick went 2-for-4, delivering the first run of the game on an RBI single. Later in the inning, outfielder Timmy Robinson, who was 1-for-4 in the game, stole home on a successful double-steal attempt. First baseman AJ Ramirez completed the rally with an RBI triple to give the Trojans a 3-0 lead.
The pitching was also superb. Right-hander Brent Wheatley started the game and surrendered one run on five hits with a walk and three strikeouts in 4.2 innings pitched, but didn’t factor into the decision. Lefty Sean Adler (2-0) took over in the fifth inning and gave up one run on three hits to secure his second win of the season. Right-handed reliever James Guillen notched his first save of the year by pitching two scoreless innings and allowing just one hit.
USC has now won three out of their last four games. This included winning two out of three against Stanford last weekend in Klein Field at Sunken Diamond.
It was a much needed series win for the Trojans who were in a funk losing three straight games (including two to #7 Oregon) and seven of nine overall going into that weekend. USC showed some heart and resilience last Sunday night as they capped off the series with a dramatic extra innings comeback victory over the Cardinals.
The Trojans trailed 3-1 going into the eighth inning. However, they were able to tie the game at three thanks to two sacrifice flys from freshman catcher Jeremy Martinez and the speedy sophomore Robinson.
Both players came through for USC again in the tenth inning to help secure the win. Martinez, who was named Student-Athlete of the Week, hit the go-ahead RBI single to give the Trojans the lead and then with a runner at third, Robinson laid down a bunt for a squeeze play to give the team a two-run cushion. Swick patted the lead with an RBI single to give USC a 6-3 lead, which was the final score.
Swick has been swinging a hot bat lately as well as a clutch bat, delivering in the big moments for the cardinal and gold. The La Canada, CA native is now leading the team with a .368 batting average, a .442 slugging percentage, and seven doubles. He has also driven in 12 runs.
Robinson has been a catalyst for the Trojans leading the team with 15 RBIs, including some big hits in some important situations. He has also used his dynamic speed as a weapon despite stealing just three bases on five opportunities. Even the threat of Robinson’s quickness is a concern for opposing pitchers every time he gets on base for USC.
The pitching staff is trying round into form and some of the pitchers have thrown much better of late. Left-hander Bob Wheatley continues to be the anchor in the rotation for the Trojans with a 2-2 record and leads the starters with a 2.25 ERA and two shutouts. Wheatley has also struck out 24 batters which is second-most on the team.
Sophomore right-hander Kyle Davis has been a nice surprise for the bullpen. The Garden Grove product has appeared in 10 games for USC and was a record of 1-0 with a 0.68 ERA allowing just one earned run in 13.1 innings pitched.
If Davis continues to impress with those numbers, manager Dan Hubbs will have another solid option to go to in the later innings of close games behind Guillen and righty Nigel Nootbar.
Despite a winning record, the Trojans are hoping these last few victories could be a spring board for them to go on a winning streak. USC certainly has the talent, depth, and resilience to be a top team in the Pac-12, but must improve their consistency in order to be considered a contender in the conference.
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