Feb 24, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; General view of the NCAA championship baseball banners of the Southern California Trojans at the entrance to Dedeaux Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

The USC Trojans (11-16, 4-5) headed into Cal Berkeley over the weekend coming off one of the most difficult stretches of their season, ready to make waves in Nor Cal. After losing the series finale against Washington and dropping both games to fourth-ranked Louisville, the Trojans bounced back with an impressive performance in Berkeley.

The Trojans and Golden Bears made history this weekend up in Berkeley, playing under a unique set of circumstances. As part of Cal’s incredible story of persistence and generosity, the Bears played their first game under the lights at historic Evans Diamond. With a packed house in attendance, the Golden Bear faithful were primed to support their ball club that battled adversity to reach the 2011 College World Series.

USC plated the eventual game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning, as a two-out RBI single dribbler down the third base line by Adam Landecker scored highly-touted freshmen Timmy Robinson to cap the historic evening.

The Trojan offense tallied 10 hits overall, including a solo home run by AJ Ramirez in the fifth inning. Seniors Adam Landecker and Greg Zebrack each had two hits on the day. The Trojans leaned on Boby Wheatley to set the tempo over the weekend. The junior threw a stellar performance going seven complete innings, allowing only one unearned run on four hits, while only walking one and striking out three.

The Trojans offense came alive on Saturday, putting together nine runs on 14 hits as the Trojans took game two from California, after having secured a 9-5 victory at Evans Diamond on Friday night. USC starter Wyatt Strahan earned his long overdue first win of the year, going six complete innings and allowing only four runs (three earned) on six hits while striking out one. Freshman Brent Wheatley earned a three-inning save, his first of the year, allowing the Golden Bears only one run-on-run hit while striking out two.

Five Trojans had two-hits days, with Blake Lacey and Vahn Bozoian each delivering two RBIs on the day. The Trojans and Strahan had to work out of an early innings hole, as Andrew Knapp had a two-run home run to put the Bears up 2-0 in the bottom of the first. The Bears then tacked on another run in the bottom of the second to put the Trojans in a 3-0 hole.

Sunday started off equally successful after Blake Lacey delivered his first homerun of the season, giving USC a 4-0 lead in by the fourth inning. Freshmen Kyle Twomey was dealing on the mound, striking out batters left and right until a shaky fifth inning. Berkeley’s Chris Paul hit a three-run home run to pull the Bears within one, 4-3. They would add on two more in the bottom of the sixth on back-to-back home runs by Devon Rodriguez and Andrew Knapp to take a 5-4 lead.

From that point forward, the Trojans staff failed to keep the game close as the Golden Bears scored eight runs in a horrendous seventh inning, officially breaking open the contest. USC failed to mount any significant comeback losing the series finale 15-5.

The Trojans now stand at 4-5 in Pac-12 play, with a non-league game versus UC Irvine on Tuesday before hosting Stanford in a crucial series for conference standings.

Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

The USC Trojans (4-3) have battled adversity early in the season and are starting to play solid baseball. Luckily for interim head coach Dan Hubbs, a talented core of freshmen have made a huge impact for the Trojans.

Vahn Bozoian, Kyle Twomey, Kyle Davis, Timmy Robinson, Brent Wheatley are among the highly-touted class of freshmen that are on the USC roster. The Trojans feature 17 freshmen on their roster, yet are playing far beyond their years.

In a tightly contested series against Cal State Northridge, USC took two out of the three games, thanks to the help of some fledgling talent.

One man we have not mentioned, catcher and designated hitter AJ Ramirez, stepped up his game at the dish over the weekend. Ramirez drove in two runs Saturday and got a hit in each of the three games. Ramriez, who got the start in all three games over a benched Garrett Stubbs, played quite well behind the dish and at the plate, in place of USC’s best defensive player.

The biggest star has to be fellow freshmen Kyle Twomey. Twomey put the Trojans on his back, in 5-2 clinching-series victory over Cal State Northridge, in what was a terrific a complete game performance. Twomey was dominant from the outset, mowing down the Matadors and striking out five and giving up just five hits on 117 pitches. The day surpassed his first start, in which he struck out seven against Nebraska to begin his college career.

Earlier in the week, Bozoian drove in the game-winning run against LMU with a strong double down the line. The 6-foot-5 Bozoian is a mammoth at the dish and is starting to find his groove, hitting over .400 this season, which leads the team.

On the pitching front, the Trojans starting rotation features another freshmen in Brent Wheatley, younger brother of USC pitcher, Bob. Brent pitched five shutout innings earlier this week against LMU, effectively using his breaking ball to fool the aggressive Lions hitters.

Shutting the game down has plagued the Trojans this season, losing two games thanks to poor performances from the bullpen. Luckily for the USC, freshmen Kyle Davis and Sean Adler have been dealing out of the bullpen. Adler has not allowed a run this season in 3.1 innings of work, recording a save on Saturday night. Davis meanwhile has been an effective innings-eater coming out of the pen.

The Trojans must quickly gather their composure from the recent success over Cal State Northridge and LMU, shifting their focus to their rivals form Long Beach State, a squad that defeated Arizona earlier this season.

Kyle Twomey-THE RIPSIT BLOG

The newest addition to the Trojan Family is USC Baseball’s Kyle Twomey. The Oakland Athletics drafted the 6’3”, 165 lb. left-handed pitcher from El Dorado High School in Placentia, California in the third round. He stated after much deliberation, the family decided his schooling was too valuable to pass up.

“I was very fortunate to be drafted by the Oakland Athletics, and it was always a dream of mine to be drafted, however after many days of weighing both options my family and I both agreed that my education opportunity at USC was far too important,” said Twomey.

Baseball America noted that his fastball has been compared to the Angels’ C.J. Wilson and the Phillies’ Cliff Lee. Right before the 2012 Major League Baseball Draft in June, Twomey was ranked #62 by Baseball America in its top-500 prospect listing. The incoming freshman is most excited about the advanced level of competition that D1 Baseball has to offer.

“I feel I am a very competitive athlete and I’m always looking to find ways to enhance my game and soak up as much new information as possible,” said Twomey. “The D1 level of college baseball is the cream of the crop and I feel very fortunate and blessed to soon be a part of that.”

The southpaw not only hopes to contribute to the 12-time National Championship program but to leave a footprint of success just like many of his predecessors. “The USC baseball tradition is something I have wanted to be apart of since I was a young boy; so many great idols of mine have come out of this program and been successful at the professional level,” said Twomey.

Dedeaux Field

The team’s legacy and the collegiate education were not the only selling points for Twomey. “[Dedeaux Field] is such an enjoyable venue and the facilities are unmatched. In my opinion, it’s probably the greatest place to watch a game in the Pac-12.”

With our campus listed by the Food Network as one of the top ten best tailgating universities, a lively list of campus activities and our football team making a run for the National Championship, Twomey is very excited for the football games.

“Matt Barkley coming back for his senior year is going to have a tremendous impact on the entire university and I’m thrilled that I will be able to say that I went to school with a future NFL superstar,” said Twomey. “I’m also very much looking forward to the new John McKay Athletic Center, I can’t wait to see how it looks when it’s fully completed and opened this fall.”

The Athletics’ loss is the Trojans’ gain and many are looking forward to seeing him suit up in the cardinal and gold this spring. “I know that in my journey to obtain a USC degree I will receive an impeccable education, meet lifelong friends, and participate in a championship baseball program. Greatest of all, I will walk away as a proud member of the Trojan family.”