April 10, 2011
LOS ANGELES-- Logan Odom (3-4) struck out a career-best eight over seven scoreless innings, as USC (13-19, 4-5 Pac-10) won the rubber game with No. 11-ranked Stanford (15-9, 3-3 Pac-10) 6-2 on Sunday.
Odom worked out of a jam in the sixth to keep it scoreless, getting a strikeout of Lonnie Kauppila and Austin Wilson after Stanford put two on with one out in a then 4-0 game.
Stanford rallied with two runs in the eighth off of two USC relievers, as a Zach Jones' two-run single made it 6-2. Ben Clowe then struck out with the bases loaded as Stanford left 12 on base for the contest.
Dean McArdle (4-1) went two-plus innings, giving up four runs on four hits, as USC built a 4-0 lead after three innings. It was the first loss in McArdle's two-year career, snapping a streak of nine wins over two seasons for the righthander.
USC pushed across single runs in the first and second inning to lead 2-0, off a sacrifice fly in the first and a McArdle wild pitch in the second. A Ricky Oropesa single in the third then knocked McArdle from the game, making it 3-0. Another single, this time off of reliever Danny Sandbrink, made it 4-0, before a bases loaded double play back to Sandbrink ended the inning.
An infield single in the sixth led to the first run off Sandbrink in 10.1 innings and three appearances, as USC led 5-0. A successful bunt with runners on the corners then made it 6-0. Sandbrink gave up two runs over five innings of relief work.
NOTES: Stanford returns home for eight of the next nine games, beginning with Pacific on Tuesday and Oregon State next weekend... Stanford played five of the first six weekends on the road. It was the 15th road game of the season for the Cardinal., compared to nine home games.. Stanford righthander Mark Appel will be featured as a part of Baseball America's "three strikes" on Monday on baseballamerica.com. Appel struck out seven in the Cardinal's 8-1 win on Friday.