University Southern California Trojans
Friday, May 1
Los Angeles, Calif.
7:00 p.m. PT
USC
35-12, 17-8
5
vs
1
Rutgers
22-24, 9-13
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rutgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| USC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | X | 5 | 9 | 0 |
Photo by: William Fosnot
No. 21 USC Baseball Downs Rutgers in Series Opener, 5-1
May 01, 2026 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES – The No. 21 USC baseball team got another dominant performance from Mason Edwards on the mound and Abbrie Covarrubias accounted for four of the team's five runs as the Trojans picked up a 5-1 win in the series opener against Rutgers on Friday night at Dedeaux Field.
Edwards struck out 13 batters and gave up one run in seven innings as USC moves to 35-12 on the year and 17-8 in Big Ten play. Rutgers falls to 22-24, 9-13.
It was a pitchers' duel through six and a half innings as USC took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh before breaking things open with three runs in the inning. Covarrubias doubled in two runs and scored the third from third base on a double steal to make it a 5-1 Trojan lead.
Edwards allowed just two baserunners through the first 5.0 innings before Rutgers broke through with its first hit and run in the sixth. After giving up the run, Edwards stranded a runner on second with his 12th strikeout of the night to keep USC in front, 2-1. The Scarlett Knights got a pair of runners on in the seventh on a single and a walk, but Edwards' 13th strikeout stranded both.
Andrew Johnson worked scoreless eighth and ninth innings to preserve the win, retiring all six batters he faced, striking out three.
USC's first two runs came in the fifth, when Maximo Martinez singled in Isaac Cadena and Covarrubias singled home Martinez with two outs.
Edwards' 13 K performance gave him 101 strikeouts in conference games, setting a Big Ten record for strikeouts in a conference season. The previous record for strikeouts in Big Ten only games was 90, set by Ohio State's Scott Lewis in 2003. USC still has one more Big Ten series left during the regular season.
Friday's win also moved the Trojans to 26-1 at home for the year.
TOP PERFORMERS
COMING UP
USC continues its series against Rutgers on Saturday at 2 p.m. and then the teams wrap things up on Sunday at 1 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on B1G+.
Edwards struck out 13 batters and gave up one run in seven innings as USC moves to 35-12 on the year and 17-8 in Big Ten play. Rutgers falls to 22-24, 9-13.
It was a pitchers' duel through six and a half innings as USC took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh before breaking things open with three runs in the inning. Covarrubias doubled in two runs and scored the third from third base on a double steal to make it a 5-1 Trojan lead.
Edwards allowed just two baserunners through the first 5.0 innings before Rutgers broke through with its first hit and run in the sixth. After giving up the run, Edwards stranded a runner on second with his 12th strikeout of the night to keep USC in front, 2-1. The Scarlett Knights got a pair of runners on in the seventh on a single and a walk, but Edwards' 13th strikeout stranded both.
Andrew Johnson worked scoreless eighth and ninth innings to preserve the win, retiring all six batters he faced, striking out three.
USC's first two runs came in the fifth, when Maximo Martinez singled in Isaac Cadena and Covarrubias singled home Martinez with two outs.
Edwards' 13 K performance gave him 101 strikeouts in conference games, setting a Big Ten record for strikeouts in a conference season. The previous record for strikeouts in Big Ten only games was 90, set by Ohio State's Scott Lewis in 2003. USC still has one more Big Ten series left during the regular season.
Friday's win also moved the Trojans to 26-1 at home for the year.
TOP PERFORMERS
- Mason Edwards: W, 7.0 IP, 3H, R, BB, 13K
- Andrew Johnson: 2.0 IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 3K
- Abbrie Covarrubias: 2-for-4, 3 RBI, R, 2B, SB
COMING UP
USC continues its series against Rutgers on Saturday at 2 p.m. and then the teams wrap things up on Sunday at 1 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on B1G+.
Cova accounted for 4 of the 5 runs in tonight's win ✌️#FightOn x @YETICoolers pic.twitter.com/9bHb1XDuuj
— USC Baseball (@USC_Baseball) May 2, 2026
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Edwards, Mason (7-0)
L: Zack Konstantinovsk (3-5)
Batting:
2B: Gabriel Rivera 1
RBI: Gabriel Rivera 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Jack Sweeney 1
Batting:
2B: Covarrubias, Abbrie 1 ; Lopez, Augie 1 ; Cadena, Isaac 2 ; Lamb, Andrew 1
3B: Lamb, Andrew 1
RBI: Covarrubias, Abbrie 3 ; Martinez, Maximo 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Covarrubias, Abbrie 1 ; Cadena, Isaac 1 ; Martinez, Maximo 1 ; Stickney, Will 1 ; Riske, Maddox 1
SB: Covarrubias, Abbrie 1 ; Lopez, Adrian 2 ; Takeuchi, Kevin 1
CS: Martinez, Maximo 1
HBP: Takeuchi, Kevin 1 ; Martinez, Maximo 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP/UTL
/ BaseballUSC Baseball vs. Purdue Highlights | Trojans win 11-4
Sunday, April 26
USC Baseball vs Purdue Highlights | Trojans win 6-1
Saturday, April 25
USC Baseball vs Purdue Highlights | Trojans win 4-3
Friday, April 24
USC Baseball vs Nebraska Highlights | Trojans lose 6-16
Sunday, April 19
