USC Baseball Hosts Nebraska, UC Irvine This Week

THIS WEEK: The USC baseball team continues Big Ten conference play with a weekend series at home against Nebraska and then hosts UC Irvine for a non-conference midweek matchup at LMU.

GAME SCHEDULE:
Friday - USC vs Nebraska (Irvine, Calif.), Mar 21, 6:30 p.m. PT (FS1)
Saturday - USC vs Nebraska (Irvine, Calif.), Mar 22, 2:00 p.m. PT (B1G+)
Sunday - USC vs Nebraska (Irvine, Calif.), Mar 23, 12:00 p.m. PT (B1G+)
Tuesday - USC vs UC Irvine (Los Angeles, Calif.), Mar 25, 6:00 p.m. PT (B1G+)

PROBABLE PITCHERS:
Friday - USC: LHP Caden Hunter (3-1, 2.77 ERA) vs. NU: LHP Will Walsh (2-3, 3.42 ERA)
Saturday - USC: RHP Caden Aoki (2-1, 4.23 ERA) vs. NU: RHP Ty Horn (0-3, 7.54 ERA)
Sunday - USC: RHP Grant Govel (1-2, 8.16 ERA) vs. NU: LHP Jackson Brockett (0-1, 4.00 ERA)

BROADCAST INFO: Friday night's series opener against the Cornhuskers will be broadcast on FS1, with Saturday and Sunday's afternoon games being broadcast on B1G+. The midweek matchup with UC Irvine will also be broadcast on B1G+. Links to the broadcasts are available on the baseball schedule page at USCTrojans.com.

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.

2025 HOME GAMES: For the second season in a row, USC will play the majority of its home games at Great Park in Irvine due to construction on the new Dedeaux Field, which is scheduled to be completed prior to the 2026 season. Most midweek games will be held at LMU. All USC home games this season will be free and open to the public. For more information visit USCTrojans.com/baseballgameday.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS NEBRASKA: The Cornhuskers and Trojans have played 4 times in their histories, splitting the matchups 2-2. The most recent matchup came in 2013, when the Trojans beat Nebraska 4-3 in walk-off fashion at home. Trojan alum and major league catcher Garrett Stubbs hit a sacrafice fly to tie the game in the 9th to set up the walk off hit by Adam Landecker.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS UC IRVINE: The Trojans and Anteaters have played 77 times since 1970, with UCI holding a 40-37 advantage in the series. USC took both meetings last year, however, winning 12-5 and 12-4 in a pair of midweek contests. This will be the second meeting between USC and UCI this season, with game one at Irvine going to the Trojans, 5-2. Ethan Hedges hit a grand slam in the 6th inning to give the Trojans the lead, with Grant Govel tossing 5 scoreless innings, not surrendering a hit and just one walk to secure the win.

MIDWEEK WIN AT ARIZONA STATE: Three homers and five Trojan arms combined to hold a potent Arizona State offense in check as USC took down the Sun Devils, 6-3, on Tuesday night. Dean Carpentier had a two-run homer and an RBI triple, Ethan Hedges hit a home run and recorded the save on the mound, and Brayden Dowd hit a monster two-run shot to right to make it a 4-2 game in the 5th. Andrew Johnson got the start and held ASU in check through his 4.0 innings of work. After two runners reached to start the fifth, Sax Matson came in and needed just four pitches to get out of the jam, getting a popup and double play. Hedges took over in the ninth, working around a two-out single to record his sixth save of the year.

SERIES AT MICHIGAN: USC took two of three games at Michigan over the weekend, winning the opening two matchups before falling in the finale. The Trojans jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the opener and held on despite a late push by the Wolverines for a 7-4 victory. Caden Hunter gave up just one run in 6.2 innings pitched on Friday and Abbrie Covarrubias drove in four runs. On Saturday, Caden Aoki gave up just two runs in 7.0 innings pitched and the Trojans scored four runs in the eighth to win 4-3. USC got run-ruled, 11-0, in seven innings on Sunday.

2025 PLAYER/TEAM NOTES:

Ethan Hedges has not only been the Trojans' offensive leader this season, but has established himself as one of the nation's top closers as well. Hedges ranks 15th in the Big Ten with a .368 batting average, is 10th in the conference with 28 hits, 17th with 23 RBI, 8th with 54 total bases and his .711 slugging percentage is 13th in the league. He is also one of two USC players who has reached base in every game this year, and is currently riding a 5-game hitting streak. Hedges also has 6 saves so far this season, a total that is 2nd in the NCAA and 1st in the Big Ten. In 7.0 innings pitched, he has only allowed 3 hits while striking out 7 batters and holding opponents to a .130 batting average. Hedges has hit a home run and been credited with a save in the same game 3 times this season.
Brayden Dowd has begun his sophomore season hitting .333 for the Trojans. The center fielder ranks 4th in the Big Ten in walks (21) and 17th in doubles (6), while also hitting 4 home runs. His 16 runs scored and 13 RBI are second on the team, and his 24 hits are second as well. He also has 2 stolen bases on the year. Dowd has been a tough hitter to strike out, K'ing just 13 times in 72 at bats, while reaching base in all 20 games for the Trojans. Playing in his home state of Michigan over the weekend, Dowd had a hit in all three games against the Wolverines, going 4-for-11 at the plate. Dowd leads the team with 7 multiple hit games, and is currently on a 4-game hitting streak.
Abbrie Covarrubias is hitting .292 with 19 hits, which is 4th most on the team, and has 2 doubles, one triple and one inside the park home run (vs. UConn). He drove in 4 runs against Michigan on Friday to lead the Trojans to a 7-4 victory. After a slow start to the season, he has hits in 5 of his last 7 games, including 3 multi-hit games.
Adrian Lopez, a sophomore transfer from LBSU, hit the first home run of the season for USC, with a grand slam in the first inning on Saturday of opening weekend. Lopez had 8 homers for the Dirtbags last year. Last week at Fullerton he had 3 hits, scoring once and driving in a run as well, and on Saturday against Michigan, he had a clutch two-run double to tie the game in the 8th. He has 9 hits in the last 6 games.
Kade Higgins is now 3rd on the team with 21 hits after posting back-to-back three hit days to open the series at Michigan. The grad transfer from UNLV, is hitting .288, with 4 doubles and 3 homers.
Kevin Takeuchi returned to the lineup after a brief stint on the DL due to a shoulder injury, and had hits in all three games at Michigan. The sophomore is third on the team with a .298 batting average.
Caden Hunter, a junior transfer from Sierra College, has been electric on the mound for the Trojans on Friday nights, pitching to a 2.77 ERA (10th in the Big Ten) with a WHIP of 1.27. In 26.0 innings pitched, he has struck out 31 batters, with his 10.73 strikeouts per nine innings 8th best in the Big Ten. He most recently pitched a gem on Friday night at Michigan, giving up just one run in 6.2 innings.
Caden Aoki posted the biggest performance of the year against No. 14 Vanderbilt on March 1st, throwing 7.0 innings, giving up just 4 hits and 1 walk, and not allowing an earned run. His 10 strikeouts were a career high. Aoki was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week for his efforts against Vandy. He is the first USC pitcher to earn the award this season. This past weekend, he threw 7.0 innings against Michigan, allowing just 2 runs in the 3rd inning and then only allowing one baserunner the rest of the way as USC came back for a 4-3 victory. His 13.50 strikeout-to-walk ratio is 1st in the Big Ten and 9th in the country, and his 1.05 WHIP is 8th in the conference.
Garren Rizzo has been clutch to start the season for the USC bullpen. The first time around against Cal State Fullerton, he threw 4.0 scoreless innings, giving up just 1 hit and striking out a career high 9. Against CSU Bakersfield, he came into the game with 1 out and the bases loaded and got the next two hitters to pop up and then strikeout to leave the bases loaded. He has thrown a total of 10 innings, with 13 strikeouts. His 4 wins are good for 11th most in the country, as he has been credited with a win in 4 of his 5 appearances.
Team Stat Rankings:
9.9 K/9 - 2nd B10, 52nd NCAA
3.63 BB/9 - 2nd B10, 36th NCAA
2.73 K/BB ratio - 1st B10, 30th NCAA
1.33 WHIP - 4th B10, 46th NCAA
4.45 ERA - 6th B10, 64th NCAA
5 triples - 2nd B10, 56th NCAA

USC Baseball Hosts Nebraska, UC Irvine This Week

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Players Mentioned

Caden Aoki

Dean Carpentier

Abbrie Covarrubias

Brayden Dowd

Grant Govel

Ethan Hedges

Kade Higgins

Caden Hunter

Andrew Johnson

Adrian Lopez

Sax Matson

Garren Rizzo

Kevin Takeuchi

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