USC
Mustangs Host Unbeaten Trojans for 4 Game Series on Alumni Weekend
2/25/2026 3:30:00 PM | Baseball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Southern California, knocking on the door in the national polls with a perfect 7-0 start, travels to Baggett Stadium for a four-game weekend non-conference baseball series against Cal Poly beginning Thursday night.
On Alumni Weekend at Cal Poly, the Mustangs and Trojans meet for the first time since the 2023 season, with first pitches set for 6 p.m. both Thursday and Friday, 3 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday. All games will be streamed on ESPN+. Links for the stream plus live stats can be found on the baseball schedule page at GoPoly.com.
Coached by former Grand Canyon head coach Andy Stankiewicz, USC swept a season-opening three-game series against Pepperdine at newly refurbished Dedeaux Field, including a combined seven-inning no-hitter in the middle game. The Trojans followed with a midweek win against Loyola Marymount before posting another series sweep against Rice last weekend by scores of 5-0, 4-1 and 4-2.
All those games were played at USC's "new" home, as the Dedeaux Field project included a brand new stadium, clubhouse, training facility, press box and offices for the coaching staff. The Trojans played the majority of their home games the last two years at Orange County Ocean Park in Irvine.
Meanwhile, Baggett Stadium will celebrate its 25th anniversary with Alumni Weekend. Festivities include a ceremonial first pitch Thursday by the stadium's namesake, Robin Baggett, who was the catcher for the first pitch prior to the first game ever played in the facility. That was on Jan. 21, 2001, when Cal Poly defeated Stanford 6-5 in 12 innings.
A wine tasting event at Tolosa Winery is scheduled for Friday afternoon and a pregame alumni barbecue is set for Saturday at Ozzie Smith Plaza. More than 70 former Mustang baseball players have signed up for the weekend festivities.
Cal Poly will put its 4-3 record on the line this weekend after opening its season by winning two of three games at Campbell and splitting four games with Washington State at home last weekend.
The Mustangs hit .307 in the series against the Cougars, led by first baseman Braxton Thomas (.417, 5-for-12, four RBIs), shortstop Nate Castellon (.389, 7-for-18), third baseman Alejandro Garza (.389, 7-for-18, three RBIs), designated hitter Xander McLaurin (.375, 3-for-8) and left fielder Dante Vachini (.333, 6-for-18).
The Mustang pitching staff compiled a 3.14 ERA. Junior right-hander Griffin Naess earned a spot on Baseball America's Team of the Week and is the reigning Big West Conference Pitcher of the Week after striking out 14 Washington State batters over seven innings in Friday's 9-0 win. Freshman righty Corden Pettey pitched three innings in the 10-inning 3-2 win Saturday while junior right-hander Carson Turnquist allowed just one run and two hits over four frames in his season debut Monday.
For the season, Garza owns a .433 batting average with two doubles and seven RBIs while center fielder Casey Murray Jr. is hitting .360 and Castellon .300. Both Garza and Castellon have yet to strike out this season (30 at bats each).
USC holds a 27-10 advantage in its all-time series against Cal Poly, which began in 1953. Last meeting in 2023 at Baggett Stadium was won by the Trojans 16-3, but the Mustangs won two of three games against USC at Dedeaux Field on the second weekend of the 2021 season.
Stankiewicz, in his fourth season at USC (15th overall) holding a 109-74-1 record (450-313-3 overall), guided Grand Canyon through two Division II seasons and nine years after the school's transition to Division I, earning five Western Athletic Conference championships and four WAC Coach of the Year awards. He also was on the staff at Arizona State from 2007-09.
Stankiewicz played seven seasons (1992-98) in the Major Leagues with the Yankees, Astros, Expos and Diamondbacks and also has spent time as a professional scout, minor league field coordinator and minor league manager. He played collegiately at Pepperdine.
USC claimed 12 national titles from 1948-98, has captured 38 conference titles, last claiming the Pac-12 championship in 2002 under Mike Gillespie, and has appeared in 42 regionals (including the 2025 NCAA Corvallis Regional), compiling a 104-47 mark in postseason play. The Trojans have won 84 of 100 College World Series games and currently compete in the Big Ten Conference.
Topping the 2026 Trojans seven games into the season are center fielder Kevin Takeuchi (.450, three doubles, eight RBIs), right fielder Jack Basseer (.400, two home runs, four RBIs), second baseman Abbrie Covarrubias (.391, three RBIs) and left fielder Will Stickney (.300).
The Trojans' probable pitching rotation will be right-hander Chase Herrell (0-0, 8.44 ERA) on Thursday, southpaw Mason Edwards (2-0, 0.00 ERA) on Friday and righties Grant Govel (2-0, 0.00 ERA) and Andrew Johnson (2-0, 0.90 ERA) on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Govel (six innings, 10 strikeouts) and Cameron Fausset (one inning) combined on the Valentine's Day no-hitter against Pepperdine.
Cal Poly is expected to start Pettey (1-0, 4.50 ERA), a freshman right-hander, on Thursday, Naess (1-1, 1.50 ERA) on Friday, junior right-hander Laif Palmer (1-1, 4.50 ERA) on Saturday and Turnquist (0-0, 2.25 ERA) on Sunday.
Next week, Cal Poly hosts Pepperdine for its first midweek game of the season Tuesday at 5 p.m. and will open the defense of its Big West title Friday through Sunday at Hawai'i.
