USC Baseball Advances with Hedges’ Two Homers Against Saint Mary’s

CORVALLIS, Ore. — The USC Trojans baseball team took a major step toward the super regionals with a 6-4 victory over Saint Mary’s on Saturday night. Ethan Hedges led the charge, hitting two home runs and driving in three runs at Goss Stadium.

Saint Mary’s coach Eric Valenzuela recognized Hedges as a potential threat before the game, even though Hedges had struggled recently. He started the game strong, hitting a solo home run in the first inning to give USC a 1-0 lead. Hedges’ home run was a sign that he might be returning to his earlier form, where he boasted a .415 batting average.

Despite the early advantage, Saint Mary’s responded in the second inning with a two-run homer from Diego Castellanos, followed by Aiden Taurek’s solo shot that extended the Gaels’ lead to 3-1 in the fourth. However, the Trojans did not stay down for long. Freshman Augie Lopez tied the game with a powerful two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth.

Hedges then struck again in the fifth inning, hitting another home run that gave USC a 4-3 lead, a margin they would not relinquish. The Trojans pushed their lead to 5-3 with an RBI single from Richard Tejeda in the sixth inning.

Though Saint Mary’s managed to cut the lead to 5-4 when a sacrifice fly by Cody Kashimoto scored a run in the eighth inning, USC answered back with an RBI single from Maximo Martinez.

USC pitcher Mason Edwards improved to 3-0 with the performance, yielding three runs in 5⅓ innings. Caden Hunter closed the game, securing his first save by retiring the final three batters in order.

“We’ve heard coach say 1,000 times that it’s time to get this program back to where it has been,” Hedges said. “We’ve shown that we have the talent to do that.” The Trojans, now 37-21, are just one win away from their first super regionals appearance since 2005.

USC will face the winner of the elimination game between Oregon State and Saint Mary’s on Sunday night, while Saint Mary’s must win its next game to stay alive in the tournament.