Weekly Recap
Baseball, men’s and women’s tennis, continue success over the weekend
MARI OLSON / SPORTS EDITOR / THE USD VISTA
Although last week was a light week for University of San Diego Athletics, some teams continued to push on through their seasons. While softball and golf took a break, baseball and men’s and women’s tennis marched through key match ups.
Baseball
USD Baseball started off the week with a 7-2 win over California Baptist University (CBU) in Riverside, CA on March 29.
Five different Toreros batted in five of USD’s seven runs, while the remaining two were scored on errors by CBU.
The score was 6-0 halfway through the second inning.
Junior pitcher Jake Reed started the game for USD, marking his first appearance of the season. Reed went two full innings, giving up two hits, two runs, and striking two out.
Over the weekend, USD traveled to the Bay Area to take on West Coast Conference (WCC) opponents, the University of San Francisco (USF).
In Friday’s 8-3 win over the Dons, the Toreros again took an early lead, scoring one in the first and five in the second.
The pitching staff also put on an impressive performance on Friday, with senior Garrett Rennie making his seventh starting appearance for USD. Rennie went five innings, giving up three runs on three hits and striking out five.
Graduate student Ian Churchill finished out the game on the mound for USD, throwing 2.2 perfect innings as he struck out seven to ensure the win.
Saturday’s game brought an end to the Toreros’ eight game winning streak as the team went down 5-6 to the Dons.
Although USD got themselves out ahead 5-0 by the top of the third inning, USF was undeterred and marched back through runs in the fifth, seventh, and eighth innings to make the comeback.
Graduate designated hitter RJ Teijeiro reached home twice but it wasn’t enough as USD couldn’t hold the lead.
Star sophomore pitcher Brycen Mautz gave up two home runs and redshirt sophomore reliever Conner Thurman gave up two more in the seventh to tie the game at five each.
USD couldn’t answer after a USF solo home run, going down to the Dons by one run.
The Toreros dropped the series on Sunday, going down 2-3 after a ninth-inning rally from USF.
First-year pitcher Kyle Carr made his debut for USD, allowing zero runs in the first inning. The Toreros scored both their runs in the second inning.
The Dons were down 2-1 until the bottom of the ninth inning, when a two run home run gave the home team the series win.
USD will look to rebound when they take on the University of Portland on the road, starting April 8.
Men’s Tennis
USD Men’s Tennis took on Brigham Young University (BYU) on April 2, defeating the Cougars 4-0.
The Toreros captured the doubles point through the efforts of redshirt sophomore Sacchitt Sharrma and graduate Gui Osorio, along with redshirt senior David Nordfelt and redshirt sophomore Marvin Schaber.
The win was a whole team effort. Schaber, senior Alex Stater, and first-year Iiro Vasa won their matches in two sets to seal the victory.
The win puts USD’s overall record at 15-2 for the season, including going 14-1 on their home courts and 4-0 in WCC play.
Men’s tennis is currently ranked no. 21 in the country, with Osorio at no. 88 and Schaber at no. 118 in the individual rankings.
The Toreros will travel to the Bay Area to take on USF this weekend.
Women’s Tennis
The women’s tennis team also took on BYU over the weekend. The women beat the Cougars on the road on April 2, taking the victory 4-3.
The Toreros dropped the doubles point but were able to make up the difference through four singles victories.
Women’s tennis is also 4-0 in WCC play, and 13-3 on the season as a whole.
The Toreros play two matches this weekend. On Friday, April 8, USD will take on the University of Southern California in a match that was rescheduled from earlier in the season. The next day, the Toreros will play USF in another WCC showdown. Both games will be played on USD’s home courts.