Auburn Baseball received a gift of sorts on Tuesday night, as it was announced that their upcoming weekend series with USC will now be played at Plainsman Park after an inclement weather forecast forced the series to change venues from Dedeaux Field in Los Angeles as originally planned.
Sure, there is disappointment that the Tigers will have to wait another season to visit sunny Southern California, but it does help that they will play their second-straight Power Five opponent in front of the home crowd.
The Tigers opened the season by winning two-of-three games over Indiana last weekend at Plainsman Park behind great plate appearances by newcomers Ike Irish and Justin Kirby. Auburn’s hot streak continued on Tuesday night as the Tigers defeated North Alabama, 13-1 in seven innings at Toyota Field in Madison.
The Trojans enter the weekend with a mirrored 3-1 record after sweeping Marist last weekend and falling to UC-Irvine in midweek action on Tuesday. USC got similar results on the mound as Auburn did last weekend by recording outs without many strikeouts. First baseman Nick Lopez has also shown power at the plate for the Trojans.
What else do we need to know about USC before this weekend’s series? We called on Matt Zemek of Trojans Wire to help us out.
Zemek talks about last weekend’s series against Marist, the importance of Nick Lopez, and just how important this series is to the 12-time national champions. Without further delay, here is the latest edition of Behind Enemy Lines with Matt Zemek of Trojans Wire.
Katie Chin/USC Athletics
The Trojans scored 34 runs in a three-game sweep of Marist to open the season. What was your biggest takeaway from the series?
It’s hard to take away too much from a series against Marist. That said, this is the first season under new coach Andy Stankiewicz. The fact that USC got off to a roaring start can only help the team build confidence under a new leader who, like Lincoln Riley on the football field last season, is trying to create a new culture and revive a long-dormant program. Certain dynamics and realities can (and do) exist independent of the schedule or the quality of opponent. Building good habits contains value even against lower-tier opposition. The hope is that it can become something more. Whether it actually will is the real question.
Lyn Golden/ USC Athletics
Like Auburn, USC’s pitching limited hits in the first two games of the season without…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Baseball | Auburn Wire…