Clutch 9th inning secures sweep over Minnesota on the road

With the series already in hand, USC capped off the weekend at Minnesota with a 3-2 win on Sunday. On a day where the runs didn't come until the ninth inning, the pitching staff did well to keep the Trojans in the game until the offense could send someone home.

That's what it takes sometimes in order to win games. Being able to pull off a victory in multiple ways is the ultimate sign of a good ball club. For most of the month, the bats have been hot. On Sunday, the arms of the pitchers needed to shoulder most of the responsibility.

Either way, when Brodie Purcell got the final strike-three call, fans could see how much earning the win meant to him. The sophomore closed the final 3.1 innings and threw 51 pitches against the Gophers in Game 3 of the Big Ten series. The right-hander only walked one batter and had four strikeouts while not allowing a run.

Top of the 9th pushed USC over Minnesota

For how good the Trojan offense has been at times, Sunday was about small ball. Heading into the ninth, USC trailed 2-1. Andrew Lamb started things off with a single. Augie Lopez entered as a pinch hitter, and his at-bat went just beyond the outstretched arm of the Gopher midfielder. This allowed Lamp to advance to third.

Zach Schwartzberg then entered the ball game as a pinch runner for Lopez. Kade Higgins was next, as he too pinch-hit for a Trojan teammate. His chopper proved to be too difficult for the shortstop to deal with, and Lamb came in for the tying run.

Brayden Dowd hit a single that allowed all runners to advance, and Ethan Hedges grounded out on the next at-bat. Schwartzberg was able to score what ended up being the game-winning run, and the Trojan defense took it from there.

Now looking to grab a win in their one-off against CSUN, USC will look to win their next series against UCLA. With how this team is playing, they'll soon need to be preparing for a trip to Omaha.