MALIBU, Calif. – Bouncing back to even the series at one game apiece, the University of San Francisco baseball team (18-20, 7-7 WCC) notched their second shutout of the season on Friday afternoon as the Dons blanked Pepperdine (18-15, 7-7 WCC), 7-0, at Eddy D. Field Stadium in Malibu.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• Recording the first hit of the game in a big way, Nick Yovetich got USF on the board first with a solo home run to right field in the top of the third, giving the Dons an early 1-0 lead.
• Finding his stride at the plate, Mario DeMera extended USF's advantage to 2-0 one inning later with an RBI single to right field, which scored Harris Williams III.
• Making his third start of the year, Riley Ornido delivered five shutout frames while allowing just one hit as the Dons continued to dominate through the middle innings. In the top of the sixth, Kyle Knell and Michael Campagna widened the gap for the green and gold with RBI singles of their own as USF remained on top, 4-0, through six innings.
• Adding late insurance to leave no doubt, Knell plated Jordan Vujovich on a sacrifice fly in the eighth before a wild pitch and a Gabe Giosso RBI single in the ninth pushed the Dons lead to 7-0.
• Using just two pitchers in the shutout win, Lance Santerre dazzled out of the bullpen as the lefty carved up the Pepperdine lineup in his four innings of work to secure the 7-0 victory and even the series for USF. 

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Doing his job in the middle of the order, DeMera has now tallied at least one RBI in four of his last five games as the sophomore finished 1-for-4 with one run scored and one run driven in on Friday.
• For Knell, the Tigard, Ore. native registered his third two-RBI performance of the year and his first since Mar. 9 against Fresno State after going 1-for-3 with two runs driven in.
• Overall, all nine USF starters recorded at least one hit on the afternoon, with Vujovich leading the charge with two knocks. Notably, Vujovich and Williams III also scored two runs each.
• Tossing a two-hit shutout against the Waves, Ornido and Santerre combined for 9.0 scoreless innings as the duo tallied eight strikeouts and just two walks in the win.

UP NEXT:
Game three and the series finale between the Dons and Waves is set for tomorrow, Saturday, Apr. 16 at 1:00 pm at Eddy D. Field Stadium. For USF, RHP Jesse Barron is projected to take the mound to begin while RHP Trevor Hinkel will toe the rubber for Pepperdine. Live streaming and live statistics are available via the team's schedule page.
 
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