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The USC Baseball (29-10, 10-5) team did something this weekend they had not done since 2011: win a series against the Oregon Ducks. One Trojan extended his hitting streak to 21 games as the Trojans maintain third place in the Pac-12 Standings.
Friday: Oregon roughed up Trojan starting pitcher Brent Wheatley for four runs in the top of the first inning in the series opener but the Trojans responded with three of their own in the bottom half. After his rough first inning, Wheatley settled down and threw 2.2 shutout innings before being replaced by Tyler Gilbert. In the bottom of the fourth, the Trojans took their first lead of the night after Timmy Robinson hit his first career grand slam. On a 1-1 pitch, Robinson crushed a fastball to deep left to give the Trojans an 8-4 lead. Robinson finished the night two for four with two runs scored and five RBIs. Oregon added one in the top of the seventh but USC responded with five in the bottom of the seventh to extend their lead to eight. USC would go on to win 13-5, thanks in part to Robinson's big night and Gilbert's nice outing in relief.
Saturday: Once again, Oregon hammered a USC starting pitcher, this time Kyle Twomey. The Ducks batted around in the second inning, scoring seven runs on five hits and taking advantage of a costly Trojan error. Twomey lasted only 1.2 innings, allowing five hits, seven runs (two earned), two walks, and three strikeouts. USC scored twice in the bottom of the sixth but the Ducks offense caught fire again in the eighth, adding five runs. Oregon would go on to win 15-4. The Ducks 15 runs were their second most on the season as they evened up the series.
Sunday: Freshman starting pitcher Mitch Hart gave up a solo home run on the first pitch of the game but that was his only mistake on the afternoon as he threw six innings, allowing three hits, one run, and striking out eight. USC scored twice in the bottom of the first, once in the second and once in the fourth to jumped out to a 4-1 lead heading into the seventh inning. Reliever Marc Huberman got into a bit of a jam as he allowed two runs but ended the inning by stranding two runners on base. USC added two in the seventh and one in the eighth to secure their first series victory over the Ducks since 2011. Bobby Stahel went two for four with a run scored and extended his hitting streak to 21.
USC is on the road this weekend as they will travel to Corvallis to face Oregon State.