USC baseball continued its recent hot streak over the weekend, winning two of three games against Penn State to secure its fifth consecutive series win. A late-game collapse in the opener could have spelled disaster for the series, but the Trojans picked themselves up and took home the remaining two games in convincing fashion.

“It’s always good to win a series on the road,” said Head Coach Andy Stankiewicz in an interview posted to the team’s X account Sunday. “Penn State’s a great opponent, man. They’re well-coached, they play the game well.”

Friday’s opening game seemed destined to be a pitcher’s duel, with two bona fide aces in USC (23-12, 11-7 Big Ten) junior Caden Hunter and Penn State (22-12, 10-8) junior Ryan DeSanto. The pair entered the game tied for the Big Ten lead in wins and comfortably within the top 10 for both ERA and strikeouts.

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The duo did not disappoint, putting on a show with seven innings of one-run ball each. DeSanto was nearly untouchable outside of a shaky third inning, which saw the Trojans load the bases with no outs for junior infielder and pitcher Ethan Hedges. The two-way star drew a walk to drive in the first run of the game, but DeSanto retired the next three batters to get out of the jam with limited damage.

Hunter was arguably even better, allowing just three hits and keeping the Nittany Lions scoreless through the first six innings. However, a seventh-inning home run by junior outfielder Paxton Kling — only the fourth homer allowed by Hunter all season — tied the score at 1-1 and marked the sole blemish on an otherwise dominant outing for USC’s ace.

Following Kling’s solo shot, USC was faced with a pivotal situation — a tie game in the bottom of the eighth — and needed to stay vigilant to prevent a late Penn State rally. Instead, the Trojan defense unraveled, allowing one run to score after two consecutive errors and another to come in on a shallow sacrifice fly. 

Despite not recording a hit in the inning, the Nittany Lions took a 3-1 lead off of two errors and four walks, and junior pitcher Dimond Loosli shut the door in the ninth to secure the win for Penn State.

If the Trojans were fazed by their late blunders in the loss, they certainly didn’t show it, getting right back on track Saturday. Starting pitching was once again their biggest strength, with senior pitcher Caden Aoki holding Penn State to two runs over seven innings while notching six strikeouts. It’s been an up-and-down season for Aoki, who currently sports a 5.22 ERA, but he delivered a gem when the team needed it most.

On the offensive side, five Trojans recorded an RBI, including redshirt junior infielder Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek, who drove in a run in the third inning and finished 3-for-5, his 13th multi-hit game of the season. Unlike Friday’s game, when USC hit just 1-for-7 with runners on base, the offense was able to break through and provide some runs when needed.

“[Assistant Coach Travis Jewett] is relentless on that. He kind of called the guys out a little bit,” Stankiewicz said. “We’ve got to have tougher at-bats in those moments … We’ve got to be better in those situations, and I think game two and three we were.”

Thanks to that timely hitting, USC had a 5-0 lead by the fifth inning and never looked back. Following Aoki’s sharp performance, freshman pitcher Andrew Johnson locked down the remaining two innings to record his first save of the season and secure a 6-3 win for the Trojans.

Sunday’s rubber match was an offense-heavy affair, with the two teams combining for 17 runs after mustering just 13 total in the previous two games. USC got out to an early lead with a five-run third inning, capped off by a two-run single from sophomore infielder Abbrie Covarrubias. However, Penn State junior infielder Ryan Weingartner hit a grand slam in the fourth to cut the lead to one.

To win this game, the Trojans would need to either keep mashing on offense or have their bullpen shut the Nittany Lions down. No sweat for Stankiewicz’s squad — they did both.

Martin-Grudzielanek delivered his sixth home run of the season to spark a three-run fifth inning, giving USC a comfortable lead they wouldn’t relinquish. From the bullpen, three Trojan pitchers — sophomore Dylan Osborne, sophomore Brodie Purcell and Hedges — combined for four scoreless innings to dash any hopes of a Penn State comeback. Hedges, who has assumed the role of the team’s primary closer, finished the Nittany Lions off in the ninth for an 11-6 victory and another series win.

“We had to keep on bringing guys out of the bullpen, and everybody that came out of the bullpen did a nice job,” Stankiewicz said. “I’m just happy with the ability to forget about a tough one on Friday night and get back on it.”

With Sunday’s win, USC is now 8-1 in its last nine games and has not lost a series since being swept by No. 16 Oregon (25-10, 12-6) more than a month ago. The Trojans now find themselves in fourth place in the Big Ten, a prime position as they look to secure a spot in the postseason down the stretch. 

USC returns to action Tuesday at 6 p.m., playing against Hawai’i (24-10, 10-8 Big West) at Page Stadium in Los Angeles. The team will then host Gonzaga (17-15, 10-2 West Coast) in a three-game series at Great Park in Irvine, starting with a game Thursday at 6:30 p.m.