LOS ANGELES, Calif. The Pepperdine baseball team heads across Los Angeles to face the Bruins of #14 UCLA tomorrow night under the lights.
GAME #28— Pepperdine (6-21, 2-4) vs #14 UCLA (22-5, 10-2) | Tuesday, April 1 | 6:00 p.m. | Jackie Robinson Stadium | Los Angeles, Calif.
COVERAGE: The game will be streamed on Big Ten+ (subscription required). Links to the broadcasts as well as live stats will be available at pepperdinewaves.com.
SERIES VS. UCLA: Dating back to 1955, the Waves are 42-68-4 against the Bruins. Pepperdine split the two midweeks with UCLA last year, beating them in Los Angeles with a score of 10-2.
Julian Nunez,
Nick Upstill,
Luke Pemberton, and
Andrew Savage all scored in that game, with Nunez finding his way around the bases twice. Redshirt sophomore
Adam Troy picked up the win on the mound for the Waves.
SCOUTING THE BRUINS: Jumping ten spots in the rankings, the Bruins settle in at #14 nationally after sweeping Big Ten foe Purdue this weekend. With two guys batting above .350, Roch Cholowsky and Mulivai Levu are leading the way for UCLA offensively. As a whole, the Bruins have outscored their opponents 241-129 this year, averaging 8.93 runs a game.
LAST TIME OUT: The Waves headed two hours south to San Diego this past weekend for a three-game series against the Toreros. Taking the Friday night game 6-5, the Waves ultimately dropped the series, losing Saturday and Sunday.
WCC PRESEASON: Identical to last season, Pepperdine is predicted to finish seventh in the West Coast Conference this year. The whole list is as follows:
1. San Diego 2. Portland T-3. Gonzaga T-3. Saint Mary's 5. Santa Clara 6. LMU
7. Pepperdine 8. San Francisco; 9. Pacific.
YARD SALE: So far this season, nine different Waves have notched a home run, with seniors
Andrew Savage and
Julian Nunez hitting multiple. All but three have been solo shots, accounting for just under 22 percent of total runs scored this season.
UP WITH UPSTILL: Going on eight consecutive games with a hit, graduate
Nick Upstill leads the Waves with a .318 batting average, including a team-high seven extra base hits. With a perfect stolen base percentage, the Huntington Beach native is intentional when he is on base, reflected by his statistics as he leads Pepperdine in multiple offensive categories.
WAVES IN THE DRAFT: In the 2019 MLB Draft, Easton Lucas was drafted by the Miami Marlins in the 14th round with the 411th overall pick. He made his big league debut with the Oakland Athletics on 9/8/23 as a relieving pitcher against the Texas Rangers. In 2023, middle infielders Ryan Johnson and John Peck were both selected in the MLB Draft. Peck was the Waves' highest drafted player since 2016, having been selected in the seventh round by the Detroit Tigers. Johnson was drafted in the eighth round by the Houston Astros. This is the first time since 2010 that Pepperdine had two picks in the first eight rounds. Left handed pitcher Shane Telfer also signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks on 7/17/23. Most recently, 2021 grad Billy Cook has premiered in the majors with the Pittsburgh Pirates, originally drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 10th round of the 2021 MLB Draft.
POSTSEASON HISTORY: Pepperdine won its only College World Series title in 1992 and also played in the 1979 CWS. The Waves made their 30th and most recent 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.
TICKETS: Season tickets are now available for just $99! Any group inquiries for discounted rates can contact alrick.drummond@pepperdine.edu. All tickets can be purchased at tickets.pepperdinewaves.com. Register your youngster today to get exclusive perks like a JR WAVES t shirt and access to home events. Email joey.swett@pepperdine.edu for all interests.
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 20 schools to have accomplished this feat — and 10 overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 26 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, five times (most recently in back-to-back years during the 2022-23 and 2021-22). Located in scenic Malibu, California, 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 #76 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
