USC Baseball Evens Series With 6-1 Win Over No. 25 Arizona State

LOS ANGELES – The USC baseball team got 6.1 strong innings on the mound from Chandler Champlain while pounding the No. 25 Arizona State pitching staff for 12 hits en route to a 6-1 victory on Saturday afternoon at Dedeaux Field.
 
The Trojans hit safely in every inning on the day to even the series and move to 23-24 overall on the season and 11-15 in Pac-12 play. The Sun Devils fall to 31-17 overall and 15-11 in conference action.
 
USC jumped ahead early, putting up two runs on a Ben Ramirez double in the first inning. After Champlain gave up his lone run of the day in the second, the Trojans broke the game open with three runs in the sixth inning to take a 5-1 lead. Trevor Halsema doubled home a run in the sixth, and Tyler Pritchard and Rhylan Thomas each followed with an RBI as well. Halsema had a career-high three hits on the day in his first start of the year.
 
Champlain gave up just the lone run in the second, stranding runners on second and third to end that inning and keep USC up 2-1. He would exit in the seventh with runners on first and second, giving way to Garrett Clarke who promptly got the last two outs of the frame and stranded both. Clarke tossed 2.0 scoreless before handing the ball off to Nate Clow, who got a strikeout and groundout to strand the bases full in the ninth. Clow earned his sixth save of the year in the game.
 
Champlain moved to 4-4 with the win, scattering four hits and walking two while striking out seven on the afternoon. He retired the side in order four times in the game and allowed just one extra-base hit, an RBI double in the second.
 
USC tacked on a run in the eighth thanks to a John Thomas sacrifice fly. Four different Trojans had multi-hit games and five different USC players drove in runs.
 
TOP PERFORMERS

• Chandler Champlain: W (4-4), 6.1 IP, 4H, ER, 2BB, 7K
• Ben Ramirez: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2B
• Trevor Halsema: 3-for-4, RBI, 2R, 2 2B
• Tyler Pritchard: 2-for-4, RBI

 
UP NEXT
The Trojans and Sun Devils wrap things up with Senior Day at Dedeaux Field on Sunday at noon. The series finale will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.