MALIBU, Calif. – After two weeks off due to COVID-19 protocols, the Pepperdine baseball team retakes the field this weekend, hosting Gonzaga in a West Coast Conference series. 
 
SCHEDULE:
Friday (4/16) - Pepperdine vs. Gonzaga at 3 p.m.
Saturday (4/17) - Pepperdine vs. Gonzaga at 1 p.m.
Sunday (4/18) - Pepperdine vs. Gonzaga at 1 p.m.
 
COVERAGE: All three games against the Bulldogs will be broadcast live on the WCC Network. Links to the broadcasts as well as live stats are available on the baseball schedule page on PepperdineWaves.com. Fans can also follow @PeppBaseball on Twitter for live, in-game updates.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The last time the Waves took the field, they took two of three games from Saint Mary's in Malibu. In the Friday game, Pepperdine shut out the Gaels 4-0, thanks to six shutout innings from Trevor Hinkel. The Waves then defeated the Gaels 7-3 on Saturday to take the series before falling 3-2 on Sunday.
 
HOME ATTENDANCE: Following new state and country guidelines, Pepperdine will begin allowing a limited number of team guests to attend home baseball games. However, only family members of Pepperdine student-athletes, who must be California residents and placed on a team pass list, will be allowed in at this time. Tickets are still not available for the general public. Guests must adhere to the venue's COVID-19 protocols.
 
WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Ryan Johnson was the first Wave to earn West Coast Conference Player of the Week on March 9. The sophomore had a great week, hitting .500 (8-for-16) with 11 RBI. On Sunday against CSU Fullerton, Johnson had a 4-for-5 day, hitting a two-run home run and driving in five total runs. 
 
SERIES VS. GONZAGA: Pepperdine owns a 58-41 all-time advantage over Gonzaga. The last time the two teams met was during the 2019 season, when the Waves took two of three in Malibu.
 
FOLLOW AND LIKE WAVES BASEBALL: Be sure and join the Waves' growing community on Facebook (Pepperdine Baseball), Instagram (@pepperdinebaseball) and Twitter (@PeppBaseball) today.
 
WCC PRESEASON: Pepperdine is predicted to finish first in the West Coast Conference this year. The whole list is as follows: 1. Pepperdine, 2. Gonzaga, 3. San Diego, 4. BYU, 5. Loyola Marymount, 6. San Francisco, 7. Portland, 8. Santa Clara, 9. Saint Mary's, 10. Pacific.
 
The Waves also had four athletes named to the Preseason All-WCC team: Seniors Reese Alexiades, Billy Cook and Aharon Modlin, and junior RHP Cooper Chandler.
 
COACHING STAFF: 2021 marks the sixth 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 Jim Lawler on an interim basis to fill the team's role last year as pitching coach after Rolando Garza left after four years. Lawler has over 35 years of collegiate baseball coaching experience, most notably spending 25 years as the pitching coach at Texas A&M. 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 major 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 #49 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.