LOS ANGELES – Opening Pac-12 play with a doubleheader on Saturday at USC, No. 2 Stanford (10-4, 1-1 Pac-12) split the set with the Trojans (6-7-1, 1-1 Pac-12), taking game one 6-4 before dropping the second game 10-7.
The Cardinal broke through after a 4-4 tie in the seventh inning to knock off the Trojans in game one.
Senior Quinn Mathews (3-1) started on the mound and picked up the win for the Cardinal. The left-hander went seven innings, giving up four runs on five hits, allowing four walks and striking out six. Junior Brandt Pancer also made an impact on the mound for the Cardinal, throwing 1.2 shutout innings while allowing one hit.
In the batter's box, the Cardinal were paced by junior Alberto Rios, who went 2-for-4 on the day with a home run and two RBIs. Freshman Malcolm Moore put together a noteworthy performance at the dish as well, going 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBIs.
Sophomore Jake Sapien also chipped in for Stanford, putting together two hits in four trips to the plate while adding a triple as the designated hitter.
Trailing 1-0 after one inning, Rios put the Cardinal ahead with a two-run shot in the second – part of a three-run inning for Stanford.
After USC cut the lead to 3-2, Braden Montgomery punched an RBI-single into left field to push the tally to 4-2 in the third.
The Trojans managed to tie the game at 4-4 in the sixth, but Moore came up clutch with a two-RBI single that plated Eddie Park and Montgomery in the eighth inning to give Stanford the lead for good.
Junior Drew Dowd came on with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and retired the final hitter to earn his first career save.
GAME NOTES
» Four Cardinal had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» The Cardinal out-hit the Trojans at a 10-6 clip.
» Stanford went 2-for-5 (.400) with runners in scoring position.
» Stanford pitchers faced 35 USC hitters in the game, allowing 11 ground balls and eight fly balls while striking out six.
A strong offensive output was not enough for the Cardinal in game two on Saturday, as Stanford tallied seven runs, but could not hold off the Trojans.
Senior Nicolas Lopez (2-1) took the loss on the mound for Stanford after allowing a run on three hits over one inning of work. With the Cardinal leading 5-4, Lopez inherited the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth inning and allowed a bloop single that dropped into right-center field and cleared the bases.
Montgomery continued his strong play at the plate, going 2-for-4 on the day with a home run, a walk and two RBIs. Rios stayed hot as well, going 1-for-4 with his second homer of the day and three RBIs.
Trailing 4-0, the Cardinal put up five runs in the fourth inning, highlighted by a three-run homer off the bat of Rios to take the lead.
After USC plated the three two-out runs in the sixth to take a 7-5 lead, Montgomery got the Cardinal back even with a two-run shot in the seventh – his fifth round tripper of the year.
Just as it did in the sixth, USC rallied with two outs in the seventh to eventually score three runs on three hits and a walk.
Stanford was unable to get anything going in the final two innings as Josh Blum and Garrett Clarke shut the door for the victory. Clarke tossed the 1-2-3 ninth to earn his first save of the year. Blum, who struck out four of the five batters he faced, was credited with the win and improved to 2-0.
GAME NOTES
» Stanford pitchers faced 41 USC hitters in the game, allowing nine ground balls and three fly balls while striking out 11.
» The Cardinal drew five walks from USC pitching.
» Montgomery led the Cardinal at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.
UP NEXT
Stanford and USC will play the rubber game of the three-game series on Sunday. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.