Friday, May 8
Malibu, Calif.
3:00 p.m. PT
Pepperdine University
19-29, 13-9
5
vs
3
Portland
25-21, 11-11
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
| Pepperdine | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 5 | 10 | 0 |
Photo by: Greg Bintz
Baseball Takes Down Portland in Series-Opening Win
5/8/2026 8:20:00 PM | Baseball
MALIBU, Calif. - Pepperdine baseball (19-29, 13-9 WCC) earned a big win on Friday as the Waves took game one of the three-game weekend series against the Portland Pilots (25-21, 11-11 WCC).
"What a great WCC Friday night starting match between Casey Euper and Will Labonte," said Head Coach Tyler LaTorre. "Casey was excellent again for us, I am so glad he was rewarded with a win for his tremendous efforts today. He kept his pitch count down and made big time pitches when he needed to. For us offensively, it took us a little bit to get going and we need to improve on our situational hitting. Seems like in those moments we try to do too much and go away from our team approach. However, today it was about our two-out hitting. Two big at-bats for us by Josh Woodworth and Trey Dunn."
Euper was dialed in again, recording his sixth consecutive quality start (7.0 innings, three earned runs). He's recorded at least 6.0 innings in his last half-dozen starts.
It was the Pilots that took off into an early lead in the second inning, making it 1-0 on Dakota Chun's RBI fielder's choice, scoring Leo Cote. It was some unfortunate luck for Euper, as a routine ground ball was briefly mishandled by Julian Nunez that prevented what would've been an inning-ended double play. The Waves finally cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth on James Dell'Amico's infield single. Joshua Woodworth and Trey Dunn had consecutive singles to start the inning before Kai Laxa laid a beauty of a bunt that put Dunn and Woodworth on second and third, respectively, with only one out. Dell'Amico then beat a ground ball that was slow enough to allow him to reach while plating Woodworth and moving Dunn to third.
"Josh crushed that ball to right field," said LaTorre. "On most days that's a homerun, but with the wind blowing in today he had to settle for a big two-RBI knock. For Trey, what an at bat late in the game with the game tied. To sit back and drive that off speed pitch through the right side to essentially win the game, was huge."
Portland answered with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth on Jonas Salk's scorching two-RBI double, knotting the game at three. Pepperdine didn't waste much time with a response, getting production from the top of the order as the Waves plated two in the seventh. Patterson notched a one-out single before Nunez delivered another base hit. Woodworth grounded out but it put Patterson and Nunez in scoring position for Trey Dunn, who's been one of Pepperdine's leaders all season in multi-RBI games. He made it eight of those with a two-RBI single that found grass in right field, giving the lead back to the home squad at 5-3.
Dylan Stewart went one-two-three in the eighth, and Lucien Wechsberg extended his career year with his ninth save as Pepperdine took the first game of the series by a final of 5-3.
"Dylan Stewart and Lucien Wechsberg were lights out coming out of the bullpen. They didn't give Portland any sign of life and that's what high leverage arms are supposed to do. Portland is a high quality team and it will be another tough contest tomorrow."
As of publishing time, Pepperdine is tied for second place in the WCC with San Francisco.
GAME NOTES
ABOUT PEPPERDINE BASEBALL
Pepperdine baseball has one of the richest traditions and success stories among mid-major baseball programs in the country. The Waves won the NCAA National Championship in 1992 and have made 28 NCAA Tournament appearances in total. Located in scenic Malibu, California, Eddy D. Field Stadium boasts one of the most remarkable views in college baseball and has seen 35 former Waves reach the MLB while seeing 41 All-American selections.
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase tickets to upcoming home events, visit here.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine baseball news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineBASE.
"What a great WCC Friday night starting match between Casey Euper and Will Labonte," said Head Coach Tyler LaTorre. "Casey was excellent again for us, I am so glad he was rewarded with a win for his tremendous efforts today. He kept his pitch count down and made big time pitches when he needed to. For us offensively, it took us a little bit to get going and we need to improve on our situational hitting. Seems like in those moments we try to do too much and go away from our team approach. However, today it was about our two-out hitting. Two big at-bats for us by Josh Woodworth and Trey Dunn."
Euper was dialed in again, recording his sixth consecutive quality start (7.0 innings, three earned runs). He's recorded at least 6.0 innings in his last half-dozen starts.
It was the Pilots that took off into an early lead in the second inning, making it 1-0 on Dakota Chun's RBI fielder's choice, scoring Leo Cote. It was some unfortunate luck for Euper, as a routine ground ball was briefly mishandled by Julian Nunez that prevented what would've been an inning-ended double play. The Waves finally cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth on James Dell'Amico's infield single. Joshua Woodworth and Trey Dunn had consecutive singles to start the inning before Kai Laxa laid a beauty of a bunt that put Dunn and Woodworth on second and third, respectively, with only one out. Dell'Amico then beat a ground ball that was slow enough to allow him to reach while plating Woodworth and moving Dunn to third.
Pepperdine kept plugging away, taking the lead in the fifth. Danny Cook led off the frame with a full-count walk. Several batters later, with two outs, Julian Nunez singled back up the middle. Woodworth ensued with a frozen rope that carried into deep right and caromed off the wall allowing Cook and Nunez to score. There was potential interference on the basepaths by Portland, with Woodworth falling to the ground before scrambling back to first base. Either way, the Waves took a 3-1 advantage.Team effort in game 1 💪🏽😮💨#makewaves | @PepperdineWaves pic.twitter.com/BI2pQA6nhb
— Pepperdine Baseball (@PepperdineBASE) May 9, 2026
"Josh crushed that ball to right field," said LaTorre. "On most days that's a homerun, but with the wind blowing in today he had to settle for a big two-RBI knock. For Trey, what an at bat late in the game with the game tied. To sit back and drive that off speed pitch through the right side to essentially win the game, was huge."
Portland answered with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth on Jonas Salk's scorching two-RBI double, knotting the game at three. Pepperdine didn't waste much time with a response, getting production from the top of the order as the Waves plated two in the seventh. Patterson notched a one-out single before Nunez delivered another base hit. Woodworth grounded out but it put Patterson and Nunez in scoring position for Trey Dunn, who's been one of Pepperdine's leaders all season in multi-RBI games. He made it eight of those with a two-RBI single that found grass in right field, giving the lead back to the home squad at 5-3.
Dylan Stewart went one-two-three in the eighth, and Lucien Wechsberg extended his career year with his ninth save as Pepperdine took the first game of the series by a final of 5-3.
"Dylan Stewart and Lucien Wechsberg were lights out coming out of the bullpen. They didn't give Portland any sign of life and that's what high leverage arms are supposed to do. Portland is a high quality team and it will be another tough contest tomorrow."
As of publishing time, Pepperdine is tied for second place in the WCC with San Francisco.
GAME NOTES
- Woodworth extended his hitting streak to 12, surpassing Patterson to make it the longest by any Wave this season.
- Nunez, Woodworth, Dunn, and Dell'Amico all had two hits.
- The Waves only struck out three times, while the Pepperdine pitching staff sat down 10 Pilots.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE BASEBALL
Pepperdine baseball has one of the richest traditions and success stories among mid-major baseball programs in the country. The Waves won the NCAA National Championship in 1992 and have made 28 NCAA Tournament appearances in total. Located in scenic Malibu, California, Eddy D. Field Stadium boasts one of the most remarkable views in college baseball and has seen 35 former Waves reach the MLB while seeing 41 All-American selections.
TICKETS
For more information and to purchase tickets to upcoming home events, visit here.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine baseball news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineBASE.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Euper, Casey (5-3)
L: SWYGART, TREY (5-1)
S: Wechsberg, Lucien (9)
Batting:
2B: SALK, JONAS 1 ; SWYGART, TREY 1
RBI: SALK, JONAS 2 ; CHUN, DAKOTA 1
SH: LANDWEHR, JT 1
Base Running:
RUNS: BEAN, BRADY 1 ; COTE, LEO 1 ; SWYGART, TREY 1
HBP: SWYGART, TREY 1
Batting:
RBI: Dunn, Trey 2 ; Dell'Amico, James 1 ; Woodworth, Joshua 2
SH: Laxa, Kai 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Nunez, Julian 2 ; Patterson, Daniel 1 ; Woodworth, Joshua 1 ; Cook, Danny 1
HBP: Cook, Danny 1
Players Mentioned
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