No. 25 USC Baseball Opens Big Ten Tournament Against Michigan State

Friday, May 22

Omaha, Neb.

7:00 a.m. PT

USC

Michigan State University

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No. 25 USC Baseball Opens Big Ten Tournament Against Michigan State

May 21, 2026 | Baseball

Game Notes (PDF)B1G Tournament Info

THIS WEEK: The No. 25 USC baseball team opens play at the Big Ten Tournament in Omaha, Neb. against Michigan State on Friday at 9 a.m. CT/7 a.m. PT. The Trojans are the 4th seed in the tournament and the Spartans are the 12th seed.

GAME SCHEDULE:
Friday - USC vs. Michigan State (Charles Schwab Field), May 22, 9 a.m. CT/7 a.m. PT (BTN)

PROBABLE PITCHERS:
Friday - USC: LHP Mason Edwards (8-0, 1.49 ERA) vs. MSU: RHP JD Greeley (0-3, 7.39 ERA)

BROADCAST INFO: The entire Big Ten Tournament will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Links to the broadcasts are available on the baseball schedule page.

FOLLOW: Fans can also follow the action through live stats on USCTrojans.com. Live, in-game updates will be available for all games from @USC_Baseball on X as well.

GET SOCIAL: Follow USC Baseball on social media to get updates on everything going on with the team this season. The Trojans can be followed at @USC_Baseball on X, at @sctrojans_baseball on Instagram and USC Trojans Baseball on Facebook.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS MSU: Friday's matchup in the conference tournament will be the first meeting between the teams this season and just the fourth time overall that USC and Michigan State have played. The first ever series between the teams was last year at Great Park in Irvine, with the Spartans taking two-of-three on the road.

LAST WEEK: The Trojans played a tight series at No. 14 Oregon last week, winning the opener before dropping the final two games. All three contests were one-run games, with the opener and finale going into extra innings. Mason Edwards led the way in a 2-1 victory on Thursday as USC won in 11 innings. After the Trojans fell 4-3 on Friday, Oregon pulled out a 6-5 win in 14 innings on Saturday.

B1G AWARDS: Mason Edwards highlighted the Big Ten Postseason awards for USC, earning B1G Pitcher of the Year with the release earlier this week. Edwards was joined by Govel on the first team, Jack Basseer and Adam Troy were on the second team, Diego Velazquez on the All-Freshman Team and Andrew Lamb earned the B1G Sportsman Award. Govel was also named to the All-Defensive Team.

HOST BID RESUME: The Trojans made a strong case to host an NCAA Regional over the course of the 2026 regular season, posting an RPI of No. 8 to go along with a 42-14 record. In addition to a Top 8 RPI, USC is No. 12 in Iterative Strength Rankings (Boyd's World), No. 9 in PYTHAG, No. 14 in NET, No. 14 in RQI and No. 15 in TSR (PEARatings). Along with having the second most sweeps in the country this year, the Trojans' nine shutouts are the most in the NCAA. USC's .750 winning percentage is the 11th best in the country. Since the hosting field expanded to 16 teams in 1999, 99.998% of teams with an RPI in the Top 8 have hosted a regional.

HOME DOMINANCE: The Trojans finished their regular-season with the best home record in program history at 32-1. The previous record was 30-3 set back in 1978. This year's record-setting mark comes in the first season at the new Dedeaux Field. USC's only loss at home this year was on March 24 against then-No. 16 Oregon State.

NINE SWEEPS: USC's nine sweeps on the year marks a program record, surpassing the previous mark of six sweeps, accomplished in both 1991 and 1996. The Trojans have swept nine of the 14 series the team has played this season, including all eight at home. USC's nine sweeps were the second most in the NCAA this year.

PITCHING DOMINANCE: The Trojan pitching staff has been dominant throughout the season, posting the No. 1 Hits/9 (6.85), No. 1 shutouts (9), No. 4 WHIP (1.19), and No. 5 ERA (3.49) in the country.

IN THE RANKINGS:

NCBWA - No. 18
Perfect Game - No. 19
USA Today Coaches Poll - No. 19
Baseball America - No. 22
D1Baseball - No. 25
NCAA RPI - No. 8

MIDSEASON WATCHLISTS/AWARDS:

Mason Edwards: Golden Spikes Semifinalist, D1Baseball/Baseball America/Perfect Game Midseason Pitcher of the Year, D1Baseball Midseason All-America first team, NCBWA National Pitcher of the Year semifinalist
Grant Govel: Golden Spikes watch list, Baseball American Midseason Pitcher of the Year watch list
Andy Stankiewicz - Perfect Game Midseason Coach of the Year
Adam Troy - NCBWA Stopper of the Year semifinalist

WEEKLY AWARDS:

Feb. 16 - National/B1G Pitcher - Grant Govel
March 2 - B1G Pitcher - Mason Edwards
March 9 - National/B1G Pitcher - Mason Edwards
March 16 - B1G Pitcher - Grant Govel
March 23 - B1G Pitcher - Mason Edwards
March 23 - B1G Freshman - Gavin Lauridsen
April 27 - B1G Pitcher - Grant Govel
May 4 - B1G Freshman - Diego Velazquez
May 4 - B1G Pitcher - Mason Edwards
May 11 - National/B1G Player - Jack Basseer

2026 PLAYER NOTES:
HITTERS

Abbrie Covarrubias has been a catalyst to the Trojan offense this season with 34 runs scored and leading the team with 16 stolen bases. Covarrubias is slashing .279/.379/.378, has 25 RBI and 22 walks.
Adrian Lopez has served as a consistent run producer in the middle of the USC order, currently 2nd on the team in runs scored (54) and 3rd in RBI (41). Lopez is slashing .293/.378/.519, with 23 extra-base hits, including 11 doubles, 2 triples and 10 homers.
Augie Lopez has proven to be productive in the designated hitter spot for the Trojans. He's currently leading the team with 17 home runs, is second with a .596 slugging percentage, and is 2nd on the team with 46 RBI. Lopez's 17 homers are the most by a Trojan since Ricky Oropesa's 20 in 2010.
Andrew Lamb has emerged as one of the best power bats in the USC lineup, currently tied for 3rd on the team with 10 home runs. Lamb homered in three straight games from 3/10-13 and had a three-run homer against Washington. His .562 slugging percentage is 3rd on the team.
Jack Basseer has emerged as USC's top hitter this season, leading the team in all three slash categories at .364/.452/.699. He has 26 extra-base hits, with 10 homers, 2 triples and 14 doubles. Basseer had a walk-off, two-run shot against CSU Bakersfield on 3/18. Basseer was also named to the All-Big Ten second team.
Kevin Takeuchi has been one of the Trojans' offensive leaders all season. He leads the team in RBI (51), runs (54) and walks (37), is 2nd in hits (60) and batting average (.297). Takeuchi also has 14 stolen bases in 15 attempts.
Maximo Martinez broke into the lineup in the third week of the season and has since slashed .256/.368/.378. He had a career game against Cal Poly on 4/28, going 4-for-5 with five RBIs, three runs, three doubles, and a grand slam.
Dean Carpentier has taken a regular role at the shortstop spot as of late. In USC's last 10 games, Carpentier is hitting .367, with 7 RBI and 6 runs scored.
Isaac Cadena has come on strong both at the plate and behind it as the season has gone on. The junior transfer is now slashing .288/.419/.500, with 7 home runs, 43 runs scored, 28 RBI, 14 doubles and 2 triples.
Walter Urbon has established himself as a regular in the outfield over the last couple weeks. Since May 2, Urbon has made 7 starts, going 13-for-32 (.406) at the plate. He has 2 homers, 2 doubles, 6 RBI and 7 runs scored, hitting .389 overall at the plate.

PITCHERS

Andrew Johnson has emerged as one of the most effective pitchers in USC's rotation and bullpen, posting a 3.54 ERA and 6-2 record in 17 appearances (10 starts) and 68.2 total innings.
Adam Troy is 3rd in the nation with 12 saves this season and is 32nd in the NCAA with 27 appearances on the mound. Troy owns a 3.34 ERA in 29.2 innings pitched, striking out 37. The senior transfer was named to the All-Big Ten second team.
Diego Velazquez came to USC as both an infielder and pitcher, but has seen the most time on the mound, making 14 appearances with 4 starts. The freshman has given up just 21 hits, 6 walks, and has struck out 31 in 28.1 innings. Diego earned B1G Freshman of the Week honors after 4.0 scoreless innings against Rutgers and was recently named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.
Gavin Lauridsen has been a key arm in high-leverage relief situations this year, posting a 4.43 ERA in 23 appearances and 2 starts in 42.2 innings pitched. Lauridsen earned B1G Freshman of the Week honors after 3.0 scoreless innings against Washington on March 20.
Grant Govel has been like a second ace as USC's Saturday starter. He's sitting 3rd in the Big Ten with a 2.76 ERA in 84.2 innings pitched, striking out 85 batters while walking just 11. His 0.83 WHIP leads the Big Ten and the nation, and his 7.73 K/BB ratio and 1.17 BB/9 are both 8th in the country. Govel has been named B1G Pitcher of the Week three times, National Pitcher of the Week once, and is a semifinalist for the National Pitcher of the Year award. He was named to the All-Big Ten first team and to the Big Ten All-Defensive Team.
Mason Edwards has established himself as one of the top arms in the country this season, posting a 1.49 ERA through 14 starts and 84.1 innings pitched. His ERA ranks 2nd nationally, H/9 of 4.59 leads the NCAA, 154 strikeouts rank 1st in the country and his 16.43 K/9 are tops in the country as well. Edwards' 0.95 WHIP is 6th in the country and his 3.28 WAR leads all pitchers in the NCAA. The junior left-hander also put together a scoreless streak of 29.2 consecutive innings. Edwards has been named B1G Pitcher of the Week three times this season, Perfect Game National Pitcher of the Week once, and Perfect Game Midseason Pitcher of the Year, in addition to being a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes and National Pitcher of the Year awards. He was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year this week, becoming USC's first conference pitcher of the year since Ian Kennedy in 2005. His 154 K's are the 5th most in USC history and the most since Kennedy in '05.
Sax Matson has established himself as a key relief pitcher for the Trojans. This season, he leads the team and is 4th in the NCAA with 32 appearances on the mound, posting a 4.14 ERA with 49 K's and a .195 opp BA.