Cal Poly Baseball was unable to steal a game from No. 25 ranked USC this weekend, getting swept in a four-game series.
Through two games of a four-game set with the Trojans (11-0), Cal Poly’s (4-7) pitching stood tall, keeping the team in the contests despite being held scoreless in 20 innings of play.
On Saturday, everything fell apart during an offensive explosion from the Trojans, registering 21 hits in a 16-2 blowout victory. Looking to end the series on a high note, the Mustangs fell to the Trojans, 8-6 in 11 innings on Sunday.
Saturday blowout
The Mustangs scored their first run of the series in the first inning off pitcher Grant Govel, the first run allowed by him this season. USC’s pitching has continued to dominate this series and this season, with Cal Poly picking up just five hits on the day from three players.
Catcher Ryan Tayman had the best at-bats on the day, collecting two hits, including a colossal blast to left field, his second home run of the season.
As suggested by the hit and run total from the Trojans, Mustang pitching did not have its best day. Junior Laif Palmer started the game, looking to give length to a depleted bullpen, but six runs surrendered in 2 2/3 innings were enough for coach Larry Lee to go another direction.
Josh Morano came on in relief and didn’t fare much better, with four earned runs allowed in less than two innings. Morano was succeeded by Troy Cooper, who got roughed up in two innings of work with five runs charged to his line.
Freshmen Brady Estes and Arlo Pendleton combined for two scoreless innings, Pendleton making his Cal Poly debut.
Trojans seal sweep on Sunday
Cal Poly’s offense struggled in the first three games with just two total runs. Sunday’s contest felt similar to the rest of the series, as the Mustangs were shut out through six innings. Center fielder Casey Murray Jr. put Cal Poly on the board in the seventh with his first home run of the season, but USC’s advantage was still 6-1 entering the bottom of the ninth.
The Mustangs then proceeded to do something they hadn’t done all series: a multi-run inning. An RBI double from Braxton Thomas, followed by a two-run blast from Xander McLaurin, made the deficit just two. The left-side of the infield proceeded to tie the game at six as shortstop Nate Castellon and third baseman Alejandro Garza came through with clutch knocks.
For the second time in the series, the two teams headed to extra innings. The Trojans reclaimed the lead in the eleventh, scoring two off freshman reliever Sean McGrath. The Mustangs were unable to recreate their earlier magic in the bottom half, and the Trojans maintained their undefeated record.
Carson Turnquist started for the Mustangs, his second start of the season. Turnquist threw 99 pitches over five innings, allowing two runs and striking out three. The Paso Robles native has gotten an opportunity to start games in the last two series and has shown flashes of what made him a highly touted recruit out of high school.
Cal Poly pitching held USC’s offense at bay in the first half of the series, but the Trojans found life in the final two games, scoring a combined 24 runs. Besides the blowout loss on Friday, the Mustangs played the Trojans fairly tight in the series, but could never piece together a game in which the pitching and hitting worked in harmony. Moral victories are not something the Mustangs play for, and the team will walk away from the series knowing they did not play up to their standards.
Last season, the Mustangs received a wake-up call when they were swept by UCLA to start the season, a series that Garza called “embarrassing” and a rough introduction to the 2025 season. After a 1-5 start to the season, it’s well-documented what happened next as Cal Poly won 42 of their next 56 games and was crowned Big West champions.
The Mustangs hope for a similar trajectory with the USC series behind them, feeling that up is the only way to go. Losers of six straight, the Mustangs will have a chance to correct course against Pepperdine on Tuesday at 5:05 p.m. back in Baggett Stadium.