Boilers Hit 3 Homers Again but Fall in Finale at USC

LOS ANGELES – For the second time this week, Purdue Baseball hit both back-to-back home runs and three total long balls, but managed only one additional hit in an 11-4 loss Sunday at No. 21 USC.

The Boilermakers (28-15, 15-9 Big Ten) were swept for the first time this season while dropping just their second weekend series.

The Trojans (34-11, 16-8 Big Ten) improved to 12-0 at home in Big Ten play and 25-1 overall at Dedeaux Field.

Avery Moore and Aaron Manias connected for the back-to-back home runs in the first inning to give Purdue a 3-0 lead. But USC answered with a leadoff homer and four hits in the bottom half of the frame, scoring four times and holding the lead for the rest of the day. In the series, the Trojans outscored the visitors 9-3 in the first inning.

CJ Richmond went deep to right field in the ninth inning, grabbing a share of the team lead with his ninth of the season.

Manias homered twice in the series and Moore also went deep twice this week. Trey Swiderski and Quincy Malbrough teamed up for the first set of back-to-back home runs this week, Tuesday vs. Indiana State. Purdue has three pairs of back-to-back homers in a season for the third time this decade (also in 2021 and 2024). Manias has now been part of back-to-back home runs twice in his two years as a Boilermaker.

Jake Kramer pitched a season-high 3 2/3 innings while entering the game in the fourth inning (or earlier) for the first time this season. He retired the first 10 batters he faced, on just 31 pitches, while working three consecutive 1-2-3 innings. But USC strung together three hits in the bottom of the eighth as the lineup got a second look at Purdue’s closer. Adrian Lopez’s three-run homer blew the game open and ended Kramer’s consecutive scoreless innings streak at 20 dating back to March 21.

Kramer accounted for the Boilermakers’ only strikeout on the mound Sunday. It was Purdue’s fewest since also having a lone K in a home loss to Michigan in March of last season. The pitching staff issued only seven walks vs. the Trojans, one shy of its season low in a three-game series this year.

One weekend after five different Boilermakers had at least five hits in the sweep of Ohio State, USC’s acclaimed pitching limited the Purdue lineup to eight runs on 13 hits, with a .140 batting average. The Trojans also played flawless defense on their home field. The Boilers scored in just four of the 27 innings, with Sunday’s game being the only one in which they scored in multiple frames.

Purdue opens a season-long eight-game homestand Wednesday vs. Southern Indiana. First pitch at Alexander Field is set for 6 p.m. ET.

STREAKS EXTENDED
• Quincy Malbrough: 14-game on-base; 11-game on-base in Big Ten play
• CJ Richmond: 9-game on-base; 7-game on-base in Big Ten play

SERIES LEADERS
• CJ Richmond: 3-for-8, 2B, HR, RBI, R
• Aaron Manias: 3-for-11, 2B, 2 HR, 2 RBI, BB, HBP, 2 R
• Avery Moore: 2-for-13, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, R