OMAHA, Neb. – In a city that was once a center of vice and gambling, the Michigan State Spartans played with house money until there were no chips left on the baize.
Unable to muster any offense, the 12th-seeded Spartans fell behind USC in the bottom of the first and were held to just six hits and four as the Trojans breezed to a 7-0 win, scoring all seven runs with two outs, in the first of four semifinals scheduled to be played at Charles Schwab Field on Friday. The win makes USC, which was No. 8 in the RPI on Friday morning, 43-14 on the year, and puts them closer to being seeded high enough in the NCAA Tournament to host a Super Regional should they advance that far.
In the bottom of the first, Augie Lopez drew a two-out walk, then scored on Kevin Takeuchi’s double off the wall in right center to give the Trojans a 1-0 lead. Isaac Cadena followed with a triple, scoring Takeuchi for a 2-0 lead.
“One of the things Coach [Stankiewicz] always preaches is ‘two outs, nobody on, it’s not a death sentence,'” said Takeuchi, who went 2-for-4, scored twice and drove in two runs, after the game. “So we got to be able to have that mentality of, if we get two outs early, we’re able to come back and compete and still scratch runs. And we were able to do that a few times. So that’s one of the just the big mentality that we’ve been able to have.”
In the third, Adrian Lopez hit a one-out double, and then with two outs, Takeuchi and Cadena drew walks to load the bases for Jack Basseer, who singled to score Lopez and Takeuchi to make it 4-0.
On the mound, Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Mason Edwards got the start for the Trojans and threw four scoreless innings, striking out six and walking two with a wild pitch. He exited the game after the top of the fourth when a downpour necessitated an hour and 42 minute rain delay.
“I feel like, you know, fastball command is usually a big one when I have success… whether I can locate it or not get ahead early in counts,” said Edwards, who is ranked the No. 36 prospect for the upcoming Major League Baseball Draft by MLB Pipeline, following the game. He leads the nation with 160 strikeouts, 35 more than Eric Nachtsheim of McNeese State, who is second. “I had the curveball today and being able to locate that is a big one. So I think, you know, just overall command is kind of the biggest part.”
When play resumed, the Trojans kept their foot on the gas, sending nine men to the plate in the fifth and getting three runs, with Dean Carpentier tripling home Besseer and leadoff man Abbrie Covarrubias doubling homer Carpentier and Walter Urbon to make it 7-0.
With the win, USC advances to the early semifinal, scheduled for 3 p.m. EDT tomorrow, where they’ll face the winner of the quarterfinal game between fifth-seeded Purdue and UCLA, the top seed in the tournament and the No. 1 team in the country.
The Trojans head coach will be watching.
“I think it’s just one game at a time, one moment. We know whoever we play, they’re good,” Stankiewicz said following the game. “Obviously, we know UCLA is great, Purdue’s playing great. I’m sure it’ll be a really good game. I’m looking forward to watching it. It’s two talented ball clubs.”
Weather and the Schedule – ‘Scheduled’ is a malleable word at this Big Ten tournament, as the one hour and 42 minute rain delay in the middle of the fourth inning coupled with an ominous forecast has pushed the UCLA/Purdue quarterfinal originally scheduled for 2 p.m. EDT back to 7 p.m. EDT at the earliest, per a press release from the Big Ten Conference. Friday’s fourth quarterfinal, originally scheduled for 10 p.m. EDT between No. 11 Washington and No. 3 Oregon, will move to Saturday at a time yet to be determined, with the semifinals to follow.
Where to Watch – The entire 2026 Big Ten Baseball Championship will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network and the games will also be available on the FOX Sports App.
2026 Big Ten Tournament Schedule
All times Eastern Daylight Time
All games played at Charles Schwab Field, Omaha, Nebraska
Tuesday, May 19
No. 12 Michigan State 8, No. 5 Purdue 4 – Game 1 – Recap
No. 8 Iowa 10, No. 9 Illinois 6 – Game 2 – Recap
No. 7 Michigan 10, No. 10 Rutgers 0 (Seven Innings) – Game 3 – Recap
No. 11 Washington 8, No. 6 Ohio State 6 – Game 4 – Recap
Wednesday, May 20
No. 5 Purdue 3, No. 9 Illinois 1 – Game 5 – Recap
No. 6 Ohio State 3, No. 10 Rutgers 2 – Game 6 – Recap
No. 12 Michigan State 4, No. 8 Iowa 3 – Game 7 – Recap
No. 11 Washington 7, No. 7 Michigan 1 – Game 8 – Recap
Thursday, May 21
No. 5 Purdue 8, No. 8 Iowa 1 – Game 9
No. 7 Michigan 3, No. 6 Ohio State 0 – Game 10
Friday, May 22
No. 4 Southern California 7, No. 12 Michigan State 0 – Game 11
2 p.m. – No. 5 Purdue vs. No. 1 UCLA – Game 12
6 p.m. – No. 7 Michigan vs. No. 2 Nebraska – Game 13
Saturday, May 23
TBD – No. 11 Washington vs. No. 3 Oregon – Game 14
TBD – No. 4 Southern California vs. Game 12 Winning Team – Semifinal 1 – Game 15
TBD – Game 13 Winning Team vs. Game 14 Winning Team – Semifinal 2 – Game 16
Sunday, May 24
3 p.m. EDT – Championship Game
Photo: Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Mason Edwards struck out six in four innings of work to get USC through to the semifinals. (Courtesy of Big Ten Conference on X)
