SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - The Pepperdine baseball team evened the series against San Francisco on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Dons 4-1 behind a stellar pitcher performance from Dylan Stewart at Benedetti Diamond.
 
The Waves (11-32, 6-11) scored in the first inning for the second consecutive game and kept the lead for the entire nine innings as Pepperdine held the Dons (18-25, 6-11) to just one run on five hits in game two of the series.
 
BIG WAVES

• Senior catcher Andrew Savage (Woodstock, Ontario, Canada) went 2-for-4, including a two-run home run in the fourth inning, hitting his third long ball of the year.
• Junior right-handed pitcher Dylan Stewart (Alameda, Calif.) tossed seven scoreless innings, while only allowing two hits as he earned his first win of the year.
• Freshman outfielder Joey Damelio (San Mateo, Calif.) had a .500 on base percentage, drawing two walks and scoring an insurance run in the seventh inning.

RECAP
 
For the second day in a row, the Waves took a lead in the top of the first inning. Joe Cardinale (Salinas, Calif.) singled up the middle to leadoff the game and found himself on second with two outs. Justin Rubin (Bryn Mawr, Pa.) then hit a line drive into center field to bring in Cardinale and give the Waves a 1-0 lead after the top of the first.
 
After a scoreless bottom of the first and top of the second, the Dons were threatening with the bases loaded and two outs in the second. However, Stewart was able to get out of the jam with a groundout to short as he put up his second zero of the game.
 
With the game still 1-0 in favor of the Waves in the top of the fourth, Luke Pemberton (Boulder, Colo.) came on to pinch hit and drew a walk before Savage deposited his third long ball of the year over the left field wall to give Pepperdine a 3-0 lead.
 
Both squads remained scoreless through the fifth and sixth before Joey Damelio (San Mateo, Calif.) drew a seven pitch walk to lead off the top of the seventh. Cardinale then laid down a sacrifice bunt and Julian Nunez (Encinitas, Calif.) brought in Damelio with a single up the middle as Pepperdine perfectly manufactured an insurance run to increase their lead to four at the seventh inning stretch.
 
Stewart then came out and finished the seventh to complete his longest outing of the year, holding San Francisco scoreless and allowing just two hits.
 
With Pepperdine still up 4-0, Adam Troy (Houston, Texas) came in to pitch for the Waves in the bottom of the ninth. Attempting to rally, the Dons first four batters reached base as they made it a 4-1 game with the bases loaded and no outs. From there, Troy buckled down, struck the next batter and got the next hitter to hit into a double play to end the game and even the series.
 
NEXT
 
First pitch for the rubber match between Pepperdine and San Francisco is scheduled for 1 p.m. tomorrow. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required). Live stats for every game will be available on the Pepperdine baseball schedule page at www.pepperdinewaves.com.