MALIBU, Calif. – Coming off a series win over Santa Clara which ended with a walk-off home run from Billy Cook, the Pepperdine baseball team heads to Provo to take on second-place BYU.
 
SCHEDULE:
Thursday, April 11 - Pepperdine (16-12) vs. BYU (22-8) at 5 p.m.
Friday, April 12 - Pepperdine vs. BYU at 5 p.m.  
Saturday, April 13 - Pepperdine vs. BYU at 12 p.m.
 
COVERAGE
Links to live stats and live streams for the game can be found on peppperdinewaves.com
 
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LAST TIME OUT: Pepperdine took two of three against Santa Clara on the weekend. After losing the first game 5-2, the Waves' bats came alive in a 10-1 win. On Sunday, the two teams were tied going to the tenth inning when Billy Cook hit a ball over the wall, winning the game for the Waves.
 
TOURNEY HOPES: After missing the NCAA Tournament last year, the Waves are off to a good start in the rankings. As of April 10, the Waves are ranked 54th in the nation in RPI.
 
LAST YEAR: The Waves went 29-22 overall last year, winning the program's 18th overall title. As the #1 overall seed in the West Coast Conference Tournament, the Waves took second place, falling to champion Gonzaga.
 
SERIES VS. BYU: The Waves own the overall series 28-17 over the Cougars. Last year, the Waves took two of three against BYU in Malibu. 
 
THE STAFF: The Waves' rotation has been stellar to start the year, The reigning WCC Pitcher of the Year, Jonathan Pendergast is second on the team in strikeouts with 33. The reigning WCC Freshman of the Year, Cooper Chandler already has a complete-game shutout under his belt, allowing just five hits over nine innings against UC Davis. Senior lefty Easton Lucas has also been coming into his own, especially as of late, when he threw a complete game on Saturday, March 23 against Gonzaga. He leads all pitchers with 37 strikeouts.
 
COOKIN' UP SOMETHING SPECIAL: Sophomore Billy Cook is having a standout year. the natural third-baseman moved over to first early on, and has thrived. along with hitting .300, which is fourth best on the team, Cook is leading the team in home runs with five, including a walk-off home run against Santa Clara, is leading nthe team in OPS, sitting at .966 and is tied for the team lead in triples, with two.
 
RETURN OF THE MC(AFEE): Junior infielder Quincy McAfee is off to a tear this year, leading the Waves in batting average with a .340 clip. He is also leading the Waves in doubles, with 10 and is second in OPS, sitting at a .941 OPS. He is also getting on base any way he can, leading the team in both walks and hit by pitches with 12 and 9, respectively.
 
2019 COACHES POLL: The Waves were picked to finish second in the WCC coaches poll behind 2018 WCC Tournament champion Gonzaga. The full order is : Gonzaga, Pepperdine, Saint Mary's, San Diego, San Francisco, BYU, Loyola Marymount, Portland, Santa Clara, Pacific.
 
2018 ALL-WCC: Pepperdine swept the postseason awards in 2018, as Jordan Qsar was named WCC Player of the Year, Jonathan Pendergast was named WCC Pitcher of the Year, Cooper Chandler was named WCC Freshman of the Year and head coach Rick Hirtensteiner was named WCC Coach of the Year.
 
COACHING STAFF: 2019 marks the fourth season of head coach Rick Hirtensteiner's tenure at the helm for Pepperdine. Hirtensteiner served as an assistant on the Waves' staff for 17 years prior to taking over for Steve Rodriguez, who left for Baylor in 2015. Hirtensteiner hired Rolando Garza to fill the team's role as pitching coach. Garza served as the pitching coach at Riverside City College before coming to Malibu. Hirtensteiner hired Pepperdine baseball legend Danny Worth in the summer of 2018. Worth played for the Waves from 2005-2007, becoming one of the best shortstops in Pepperdine history. He hit .320 over his career, with seven home runs and 108 RBI. After being drafted in the second round by the Detroit Tigers in 2007, Worth made his Major League Baseball debut in May 2010 with the Tigers. Over his six-year MLB career, he had a .223 batting average with two home runs in 149 games played.
 
POSTSEASON HISTORY:  Pepperdine won its only College World Series title in 1992.The Waves made their 30th appearance in NCAA postseason play in 2015, advancing to the NCAA Fullerton Regional final. In 2014 Pepperdine made its first ever NCAA Super Regional after winning the San Luis Obispo Regional Tournament. The Waves eventually fell to TCU, two games to one in the best-of-three series.
 
ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY: Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports – one of just 18 schools to have accomplished this feat – and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment and is the only school not affiliated with a BCS-level conference. The Waves have earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, Calif., the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #46 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.