MALIBU, Calif – After dropping two of three in the weekend series versus conference foe Cal State Bakersfield, the Dirtbags traveled up the coast for a midweek matchup where they defeated Pepperdine 6-3 at Eddy D. Field Stadium.
Former Long Beach State All-American and Angels three-time all-star Jered Weaver watched his Dirtbags jump out to an early advantage in a game they led from start to finish, courtesy of the top-of-the-order clicking on all cylinders.
An active offensive first inning started with a leadoff walk from junior right fielder Kyle Ashworth.
Left fielder Connor Charpiot was hit by a pitch in the head and was immediately substituted out after falling. “We’re going to have to reevaluate him when we get home, and we will see how it goes with him,” head coach Bryan Peters said.
Charpiot reached base in all 26 games this year, including his lone at-bat against the Waves. He also leads the team in batting average, hitting .355 on the year.
Senior catcher John Newman Jr. got his big day at the plate started when he roped an RBI double down the third base line, scoring Ashworth, to give LBSU a 1-0 lead.
The heart of the order struck again in the visitor’s turn at bat in the third when freshman shortstop Adrian Lopez got a hold of a pitch, blasting it to dead centerfield for his team-leading sixth home run of the year.
After Newman Jr.’s second double of the day, junior infielder Jack Hammond continued his recent hot streak with a shot into left field that seemingly just kept on carrying, bringing the left fielder to the wall, over his outstretched glove to give the Dirtbags a 4-0 lead.
On the mound, Long Beach State got solid contributions behind an opening performance by sophomore pitcher Van Larson. He went three innings, allowed two hits, one run and struck out two batters.
“Van got us off to a good start, it’s critical that the tempo gets set by the guy on the mound, and he was in complete control,” Peters said. “Some of my favorite stuff was him getting ahead early but even when he didn’t, he found a way to get back in, making big pitches when he needed to.”
In relief, freshman pitcher Owen Geiss dazzled throwing three innings, allowed only two hits and one run while he struck out five.
Peters spoke highly of his starter, describing Larson’s three innings of work as masterful. He also praised Geiss’ uncharacteristic strikeout stuff.
“If there’s anything we’ve asked Geiss to work on, it’s his ability to finish, so him getting five strikeouts today was a really good sign for him,” Peters said.
The Waves’ two early runs came via a sacrifice fly from senior outfielder Connor Bradshaw and a home run to left field by redshirt sophomore catcher Beckett Vine to make it a 5-2 ballgame in the bottom of the fifth.
Ashworth went the opposite way to collect a base hit to lead off the top of the seventh. He proceeded to wreak havoc on the bases, in which he stole second and third base. Lopez drove in Ashworth with a double and kept the Dirtbags in the lead 6-2.
“I think that the offense was better than even the scoreboard reflected because we executed some really good team offense,” Peters said.
Pepperdine tacked on a late run in the final frame on an error to make it 6-3, but junior closer Mike Villani shut the door just after to finish off the Waves and secure the victory.
The win improves the Dirtbags to 15-10-1 while Pepperdine leaves with a 9-20 record and LBSU’s next match will be against UCSD at Bohl Diamond at Blair Field.