LONG BEACH, CALIF. – The Pepperdine baseball team just plays one this week, traveling in state to Long Beach to play the Dirtbags Tuesday night.
GAME #18 — Pepperdine (3-14) vs Long Beach State (6-9) | Tuesday, March 11 | 6:00 p.m. | Bohl Diamond at Blair Field | Long Beach, Calif
COVERAGE: The game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required). Links to the broadcasts as well as live stats will be available at pepperdinewaves.com.
SERIES VS. LONG BEACH: Pepperdine is 59-69-2 all-time against Long Beach State. In a midweek matchup last season, the Waves dropped the contest 3-6. Earlier this season, the Waves lost 3-2 to the Dirtbags in the Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament. Seniors Julian Nunez and Justin Rubin were the two to score this season in the loss.
SCOUTING THE DIRTBAGS: With an overall record of 6-9, the Dirtbags are currently on a two-game losing streak. In midweek, Long Beach dropped a 2-3 matchup to Tulane, who Pepperdine took a series from earlier this season. Senior Alex Champagne leads the Dirtbags offensively with a .310 batting average, scoring 13 runs on 18 hits.
PROBABLE STARTERS: The starter for tomorrow is TBA.
LAST SEASON: The Waves finished their season in Las Vegas last season, returning to the WCC tournament for the first time since 2018 in a first-round exit to Saint Mary’s. Overall, Pepperdine was 15-38, including a 9-15 conference record.
WCC PRESEASON: Identical to last season, Pepperdine is predicted to finish seventh in the West Coast Conference this year. The whole list is as follows:
1. San Diego 2. Portland T-3. Gonzaga T-3. Saint Mary’s 5. Santa Clara 6. LMU 7. Pepperdine 8. San Francisco; 9. Pacific.
THE SQUAD: The Waves return 22 players from last year’s roster, including six starters and two of the three weekend starting pitchers in RHP Tommy Scavone and RHP Matthew Boyer.
Through three games this season, sophomore RHP Tommy Scavone has recorded 15 strikeouts with a 2.12 ERA.
Graduate and projected Saturday starter RHP Matthew Boyer started 12 games last season. Through 61.2 innings, Boyer struck out 46 batters with an overall record of 3-7 with one save.
Senior Justin Rubin is returning after leading the Waves offensively last season, boasting a .333 batting average with a .448 on base percentage. Graduate Nick Upstill returns to the squad as well after starting in left field for 44 games last season, batting .240 and posting the least amount of strikeouts amongst the team.
Amongst the 18 new faces is 6’5″ RHP transfer from the University of Oregon Jackson Pace. The redshirt sophomore posted a 2-4 record with a 8.67 ERA before redshirting for the 2024 season.
WAVES IN THE DRAFT: In the 2019 MLB Draft, Easton Lucas was drafted by the Miami Marlins in the 14th round with the 411th overall pick. He made his big league debut with the Oakland Athletics on 9/8/23 as a relieving pitcher against the Texas Rangers. In 2023, middle infielders Ryan Johnson and John Peck were both selected in the MLB Draft. Peck was the Waves’ highest drafted player since 2016, having been selected in the seventh round by the Detroit Tigers. Johnson was drafted in the eighth round by the Houston Astros. This is the first time since 2010 that Pepperdine had two picks in the first eight rounds. Left handed pitcher Shane Telfer also signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks on 7/17/23. Most recently, 2021 grad Billy Cook has premiered in the majors with the Pittsburgh Pirates, originally drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 10th round of the 2021 MLB Draft.
POSTSEASON HISTORY: Pepperdine won its only College World Series title in 1992 and also played in the 1979 CWS. The Waves made their 30th and most recent appearance in NCAA postseason play in 2015, advancing to the NCAA Fullerton Regional final. In 2014 Pepperdine made its first ever NCAA Super Regional after winning the San Luis Obispo Regional Tournament. The Waves eventually fell to TCU, two games to one in the best-of-three series.
TICKETS: Season tickets are now available for just $99! Any group inquiries for discounted rates can contact alrick.drummond@pepperdine.edu. All tickets can be purchased at tickets.pepperdinewaves.com. Register your youngster today to get exclusive perks like a JR WAVES t shirt and access to home events. Email joey.swett@pepperdine.edu for all interests.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY: Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men’s sports — one of just 20 schools to have accomplished this feat — and 10 overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a “major” conference. The Waves have won a total of 26 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that’s given to the top non-football school, five times (most recently in back-to-back years during the 2022-23 and 2021-22). Located in scenic Malibu, California, the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation’s most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #76 overall on U.S. News and World Report’s list of America’s best colleges.
