Baseball swept by Washington


Junior outfielder Blake Sabol was a part of both Trojan runs in Sunday’s series finale, but USC would lose in extra innings. (Ling Luo/Daily Trojan)

The USC baseball team left Seattle this weekend empty-handed, dropping all three games against the Huskies and falling to a record of 8-14 on the season.

USC lost 7-1 in Friday’s series opener. The contest was relatively drama-free, as Washington jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the second inning, tacked on 3 runs in the fourth and coasted to an easy victory.

Junior pitcher Connor Lunn started the game on the mound for the Trojans and allowed 4 runs through seven innings on the day.

Lunn was outdueled by Washington freshman pitcher David Rhodes. Rhodes hurled six scoreless innings for the Huskies, allowing only one hit — a single to freshman designated hitter Emilio Rosas — in the dominant outing.

USC’s only run of the day came on a fielder’s choice by sophomore infielder Ben Ramirez in the seventh inning. After Rhodes was pulled for junior Chris Micheles in the seventh inning, the Trojans loaded the bases with nobody out — a chance to claw away at what was then a 5-run deficit. USC managed only the single run in the inning, with Rhodes striking out freshman catcher Tyler Lozano and getting Rosas to pop out to second base.

The Trojans saw a tighter game on Saturday. Washington again went up 1-0 in the third inning, but USC answered this time. Senior shortstop Chase Bushor tied the game at 1 with a bunt base hit that scored senior second baseman Brandon Perez. Sophomore right fielder Jamal O’Guinn gave the Trojans a 2-1 lead in the sixth with a single that caromed off of second base to score junior outfielder Blake Sabol.

The lead didn’t last long, as the Huskies answered with 2 more runs in the seventh inning to go on top 3-2. With one out in the frame, sophomore center fielder Braiden Ward hit a line drive to Bushor’s right that glanced off the shortstop’s glove and kicked into the outfield, allowing a run that tied the score.

With one out and runners on first and second, Ramirez fielded a ground ball and stepped on third base for the second out, but his throw to first went wild and allowed Washington to take a 3-2 lead as Ward scored all the way from first.

USC tied the game up again in the eighth inning on a RBI single from Ramirez to score Bushor. Junior pitcher Chris Clarke escaped a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the inning to keep the game tied. The 3-3 score would hold through nine innings.

In the bottom of the tenth, Husky senior left fielder Mason Cerrillo led things off with a single, took second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. After Clarke intentionally loaded the bases with one out, Ward lifted a sacrifice fly deep enough to score Cerrillo for Washington’s 4-3 walk-off win.  

Sophomore pitcher Isaac Esqueda turned in a solid outing for USC, allowing no earned runs in six innings. Bushor, O’Guinn and Perez each collected 2 hits as part of an 11-hit attack.

Looking to avoid a sweep, the Trojans sent sophomore Kyle Hurt to the mound on Sunday. After four scoreless innings from both starting pitchers, it was USC who cracked the scoreboard first. A single from Sabol in the fifth inning scored junior outfielder Brady Shockey to give the Trojans a 1-0 lead.

Washington fired back in the sixth inning with a 2-run single past a diving Ramirez at third base to take a 2-1 lead.

Bushor’s RBI single with one out in the eighth inning knotted things up again, 2-2. Hurt escaped a first and third jam in the bottom of the inning, with his 112th pitch of the game resulting in a groundout to a diving Perez to keep the score tied.

Neither team reached base in the ninth inning, sending the game to extras for the second day in a row. For the second straight day, Washington came out victorious with a 10th inning walk-off.

After USC went down in order again in the top of the 10th, Ward singled to right field with one out in the bottom half. The speedy outfielder stole second, and freshman pitcher Carson Lambert walked sophomore outfielder Kaiser Weiss to set the stage for junior catcher Nick Kahle.

Kahle’s third RBI of the day, a fly ball to left field, scored Ward for the second consecutive Husky walk-off, finishing off the sweep with a 3-2 victory.

Defense remained an issue for USC, as they committed six errors over the three games.

The Trojans will look to bounce back from the disappointing weekend with a Tuesday matchup on the road against Long Beach State. The Dirtbags have struggled this season, amassing a 3-19 record thus far, including a 5-2 loss to USC last week. Tuesday’s game will begin at 6 p.m.