Los Angeles, CA- With the game tied 1-1 in the 10th inning, CSUN’s Ben Martz drew a walk and rounded first base on his way to second base. Martz got into a rundown between bases with Joey Cooper on third base.
As Martz dove back to first, the throw bounced off his helmet and allowed Cooper to score, giving CSUN a 2-1 lead and ultimately the victory against USC in extra innings on Thursday at Dedeaux Field.
“Defensively, we played well up until that play,” USC coach Dan Hubbs said. “Offensively, we didn’t do a good job adjusting. Our guys weren’t patient and we didn’t put anything together.”
CSUN took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a leadoff double and a sacrifice fly. USC’s Stephon Dubb got on base with a leadoff walk and later scored on a grounder by Brandon Perez to make it a 1-1 game. USC loaded the bases in the third inning but couldn’t plate the go-ahead run.
USC starting pitcher Kyle Hurt did all he could to help the Trojans, allowing one hit and one run in seven innings of work. Hurt struck out two batters, walked four and retired 10 batters in a row at one point.
“He (Hurt) commanded three or four pitches in the zone,” Hubbs said. “He was able to throw his fastball and he had his changeup working. That’s two really strong starts for Kyle to finish the year. He’s got a bright future ahead of him.”
USC will look to bounce back on Friday when they host CSUN at 6 p.m. and will wrap up the season on Saturday at 2 p.m.
