LOS ANGELES — Brent Wheatley pitched 6 1/3 innings to pick up his first collegiate win as USC defeated Long Beach State 4-1 Tuesday night at Dedeaux Field.
Wheatley combined with relievers Sean Silva and Sean Adler to pitch a four-hitter.
Long Beach State (5-4) had opportunities thanks to five walks and three hit batsmen by Trojan trio, including getting the first two men on base in the fourth and ninth innings and having the bases loaded in the seventh inning. But the Dirtbags couldn’t come up with the big hits when needed, leaving 11 men on base.
USC (5-3) also struggled to capitalize, stranding 10 men on base, but it scraped together enough runs to get the victory. Dante Flores led the way with three hits, including taking Long Beach starter Nick Sabo deep in the third inning — Flores’ first collegiate home run against a southpaw.
Leading 2-1 thanks to Flores’ shot, the Trojans eventually added two insurance runs in the seventh inning when Vahn Bozoian and James Roberts scored RBI with a bases-loaded walk and a bases-loaded hit by pitch.
Check out the 16-shot photo gallery from Tuesday night’s game:
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