It’s been a tough month of April for the USC baseball team. Entering Tuesday night’s home matchup with No. 13 UC Santa Barbara, the Trojans had lost 10 of 12 and dropped to last place in the Pac-12 standings. When UCSB piled on five runs in the fourth inning to take a 5-1 lead, it looked like more of the same for USC.
However, the Trojans made sure the deficit was short-lived, scoring eight runs in the bottom of that inning and four runs in the next to take a commanding lead that they never relinquished. The 13-7 win puts USC at 20-18 overall and 2-2 for the homestand.
“I credit the players, for them to be that strong mentally after coming off some difficult losses in the last month,” USC head coach Jason Gill said after the game. “For them to say, ‘You know what, not tonight. We’re not doing that tonight. We’re gonna win this game.’ That was a game of will.”
Most of the Trojans’ runs in their big fourth and fifth innings came on extra-base hits, including four home runs. In the fourth, redshirt senior left fielder Trevor Halsema set the tone with the first of two blasts on the evening, and redshirt sophomores third baseman Johnny Olmstead and right fielder Adrian Colon-Rosado added home runs of their own to put the Trojans up 9-5.
The bottom of the Trojans’ lineup was especially productive, with the players in spots six through nine combining for eight RBIs.
“Any time the bottom of the lineup can produce like that, you’re probably gonna win a lot of games,” Gill said. “They’re capable. It’s not the first time.”
After the Trojans extended their lead to seven runs in the fifth inning, UCSB struggled to score. In the last four innings, USC’s relievers did not give the Gauchos easy bases, posting no walks or hit batters.
As usual, Tuesday was a bullpen day for USC, and the Trojans utilized seven different pitchers. Redshirt senior right-hander Isaac Esqueda started on the mound following a rough last three outings where he posted a 17.61 ERA. Esqueda pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three batters and allowing one hit and no walks.
Gill admitted the team may have rushed Esqueda into a starting role too quickly after a shin injury he suffered in February. He said the coaching staff will continue to evaluate where Esqueda fits best, but the goal is to eventually get him back in the starting rotation.
“I think tonight was a great night to take the pressure off of him and let him go out there and be himself,” Gill said after Tuesday’s game. “I think he set the tone for us tonight.”
Next, USC takes the road for a series against Washington State Friday through Sunday. The Trojans look to win a Pac-12 series for the first time since mid-March and gain ground in the conference standings.
Gill hopes Tuesday’s victory will be a turning point for his team.
“That is a really big win,” Gill said. “That’s a good baseball team we played today. It’s funny because a month ago, we were considered a really good baseball team, and then baseball happens and we make some mistakes, play some really good teams that take advantage of our mistakes, and we weren’t playing good baseball for a while. Hopefully we’re getting on track to where we were a month ago.”