Baseball

No. 1 San Diego Takes Care Of Business Against No. 4 LMU

The Toreros will meet Saint Mary's in the baseball tournament championship

LAS VEGAS - No. 1 San Diego defeated No. 4 LMU, 14-8, in an elimination game in the 2025 West Coast Conference Baseball Tournament from Las Vegas Ballpark. 

With the victory, the Toreros advance to Saturday's championship game against Saint Mary's at 1 p.m. on ESPNU. The Toreros will need to defeat the Gaels twice in order to win the tournament title. 

Already leading after a wild pitch allowed a runner at third to score, Rex Watson blasted a two-run homer to the deepest part of the park to put USD up 3-0. 

LMU clawed back into the game and tied it starting with Robbie Ayers slapping a double down the left field line that scored Beau Ankeney. The next batter Zion Williams knocked in Ayers with a single up the middle to make it 3-2, USD. Devan Ornelas tied the game with a triple to right center that sent Willaims all the way home from first to tie the game at three. 

AJ Anzai immediately gave the Toreros the lead back in the first at-bat in the top of the fourth when he went deep to deep right, making it 4-3, USD. 

The Lions responded with a long back of their own when Nate Savoie went deep to left with a two-run HR to give LMU its first lead of the game at 5-4. In the bottom of the fifth, some Torero miscues allowed the Lions to go up 7-4. Throwing errors on a double steal and a grounder to third plated two Lions. 

After LMU added one more run on a sac fly, USD got a rally going in the top of the seventh. With two on and nobody out, Jayden Lobliner, laced a double off the left field wall to score Isaiah Lane and cut the LMU lead down to 8-5. Rex Watson roped a line drive right to the right fielder that was deep enough to score Austin Smith from third and make it 8-6. An error by LMU allowed another Torero to continue the rally and allowed Vincent Venverloh to slap a two-run double just fair down the left field line and put the Toreros back up, 9-8. 

In the top of the eighth, Lobliner was at it again with another RBI hit to increase the USD lead to 10-8. USD's lead went up to 12-8 after two bases-loaded walks. 

After LMU ran out of pitchers and had to put position players on the mound, USD added two more runs to make it 14-8. 

Hayden Cody of USD pitched the final four innings out of the bullpen, striking out four, only allowing one earned run and he garnered the win for USD.