University Southern California Trojans
USC
3-1
Long Beach State
1-3
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Gursky, Brian (1-0)
L: Seminaris, Adam (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Acosta, Matthew 1
RBI: Acosta, Matthew 3 ; Paulson, Dillon 1 ; Shockey, Brady 1
SF: Shockey, Brady 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Nootbaar, Lars 2 ; Sabol, Blake 1 ; Bushor, Chase 1 ; Murphy, Kaleb 1
Batting:
3B: Duran, Jarren 1
RBI: Robinson, Shaq 1
SH: Mercadel, Tristan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Huffman, Laine 1
CS: Rasmussen, Luke 1
HBP: Jimenez, Chris 1 ; Stotler, Brooks 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Trojan Pen Locks Down 5-1 Win at Long Beach State
February 20, 2018 | Baseball, Features
LONG BEACH, Calif. – A familiar formula led to another win for the USC Baseball team on Tuesday as the Trojans got a late three-run double from Matthew Acosta and six scoreless inning from the bullpen to propel the team to a 5-1 victory at Long Beach State.
USC moves to 3-1 after a similar scenario played out twice over opening weekend. The Dirtbags move to 1-3.
Brian Gursky picked up the win after throwing 3.0 scoreless frames and giving up just one hit, while the USC bats were able to break a 1-1 tie. Austin Manning, Brad Wegman and Connor Lunn then finished things off with a perfect inning each to end the game. The Trojan Bullpen has now allowed just three runs in 20.0 innings to start the season.
USC loaded the bases thanks to two walks and a bunt single from Kaleb Murphy in the fifth inning. Acosta then laced a ball off the fence in centerfield to clear the bases and put the Trojans up for good. A sacrifice fly by Brady Shockey in the sixth made it 5-1. Dylan Paulson drove in the first run of the game with an RBI grounder in the first.
TOP PERFORMERS
- Gursky picked up his first collegiate win with 3.0 IP, one hit, no runs and no walks.
- Manning, Wegman and Lunn retired the final nine batters of the game in a row.
- Acosta hit his second multi-RBI extra-base hit of the season with the three-run double.
QUOTABLE
"We didn't do a lot offensively, but we did enough," said Head Coach Dan Hubbs. "We took advantage of a few of their miscues. They didn't turn a double-play, then Kaleb got the bunt single and Lars drew a walk, then Acosta made them pay."
"Once again the story of the game was our bullpen," said Hubbs. "One runner in six innings of work is excellent. Gursky came in and shut the door, barely letting the ball out of the infield. Then Manning, Wegman and Lunn came in and pounded the zone to go three up, three down the rest of the way. Our pitching and our defense looked pretty good, and I think we're going to win a lot of games that way."
COMING UP
The Trojans host Villanova this weekend for a three-game series at Dedeaux Field.
