THIS WEEKEND
USF (22-24, 7-14 WCC) vs. Pepperdine (17-25, 6-12 WCC)
Location: San Francisco
Venue: Benedetti Diamond
 
Game 1: Friday, May 5 
First Pitch: 3 p.m.   
TV/Video: TheW.tv
Stats: StatBroadcast
USF Starter: RHP Thomas Ponticelli (2-1, 2.45)
PEP Starter: LHP Ryan Wilson (2-4, 3.62) 
 
Game 2: Saturday, May 6 
First Pitch: 1 p.m.   
TV/Video: TheW.tv
Stats: StatBroadcast
USF Starter: RHP Grant Goodman (3-4, 5.20)
PEP Starter: RHP Jonathan Pendergast (4-4, 4.31)   
 
Game 3: Sunday, May 7
First Pitch: 1 p.m.   
TV/Video: TheW.tv
Stats: StatBroadcast
USF Starter: LHP Scott Parker (4-1, 1.80)
PEP Starter: RHP Wil Jensen (2-6, 3.63) 

Complete Game Notes [PDF]

First Pitch
USF (22-24, 7-14 WCC) returns home to host Pepperdine (17-25, 6-12 WCC) in a three-game West Coast Conference series this weekend at Benedetti Diamond. The Dons are looking to bounce back from a sweep at BYU this past weekend and a 1-0 loss at Cal on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Waves come into the series having lost nine in a row. This will be USF's second-to-last conference series of the year before wrapping up the regular season against Pacific.  
 
The Dons at a Glance...                                  
THIS PAST WEEK

• Lost the series opener at BYU, 19-6, as the Cougars took a 6-1 lead after the first inning and never looked back.
• In game two, USF let a 5-3 lead slip away as BYU scored five runs in the bottom of the eighth. Thomas Ponticelli allowed four runs over 7 1/3 innings in the start and Nico Giarratano went 3-for-4.
• The series wrapped up with BYU posting an 11-5 win on Saturday with a six-run third inning and a four-run seventh aided by three home runs. Allen Smoot, Riley Helland and Brady Bate each collected a pair of hits for USF in the loss.
• On Tuesday, USF traveled across the Bay to take on Cal, losing 1-0 after Cal scored the game's only run on an RBI chopper up the middle in the bottom of the seventh. Sam Granoff scattered four hits over 5 1/3 scoreless innings.   
   
   

WHO'S HOT?
Allen Smoot continues to swing a hot bat, hitting a team-best .410 (16-39) over the last 10 games entering the series where he has contributed five doubles, a home run and eight RBI, tied (with Brady Bate) for the team lead over that span. Bate, meanwhile, is hitting at a .368 clip (7-19) over his last 10 games with a pair of doubles and two home runs. On the mound, right-hander Brenden Jenkins continues to pose a formidable late-game presence. Having not allowed an earned run over his last five appearances, a span of 5 2/3 innings in which Jenkins has struck out three batters.
 
RECORDS WERE MADE TO BE BROKEN
Senior Nico Giarratano will wrap up his USF career over the next few weeks among the all-time leaders in a number of career categories. With 820 career at-bats coming into the Pepperdine series, Giarratano will pass Tony Hurtado (822) for the most in program history. Giarratano sits just inside the top-10 in career doubles (42) and has 199 career hits, needing 12 more to sneak into the top-10. In the field, Giarratano's 551 defensive assists are already a program record.
 
LEGENDARY LEGS
Senior Matt Sinatro has made a career out of getting on base and using his speed to be a difference maker in the Dons' lineup. He sits in seventh place in program history with 95 career walks entering the weekend and his 50 career stolen bases stand as the eighth most.  

WHERE THEY STAND
The Dons find themselves out of the race for the postseason, but trying to make a late push over their final two conference series. USF comes into the weekend in seventh place at 7-14 in WCC action, while Pepperdine sits in eighth place at 6-12 in conference play. BYU (14-4) and Loyola Marymount (16-5) own the top two spots in the standings coming into the series, with Gonzaga (15-6) and San Diego (14-7) rounding out the top four. The Dons conclude their conference slate with a series against Pacific (4-17).    
 
SOMEBODY STOP THAT GUY
Matt Sinatro had his season-best on-base streak snapped at 26 games when he failed to reach base at Cal on Tuesday night for the first time since Mar. 19. Sinatro hit .311 during his streak, registering hits in all but four of those contests. He drew 20 walks over that span while sporting an on base percentage of .426.
  
KEEP IT COMING
Allen Smoot has been as steady an offensive presence as the Dons have had this year, ranking fifth in the WCC in average (.341) coming into the weekend and among the top-10 in on base percentage (.432), hits (58), RBI (32), doubles (12) and walks (27). Smoot has registered hits in 10 of the last 12 contests, eight of which have been multi-hit performances, highlighted by a season-best four hits at Santa Clara on Apr. 23. Altogether, Smoot leads the team in multi-hit games (19) and is tied for the team lead (with Dominic Miroglio) in multi-RBI games (8).
 
OUCH! 
Brady Bate comes into the weekend tied for the WCC lead in hit by pitches, wearing 14 bean balls so far on the year, which ties for the eighth-most in a single season in USF history.

BETTER STAY PUT
Catcher Dominic Miroglio has been the most difficult catcher in the West Coast Conference to run on this year, leading the WCC with 19 runners caught stealing. He has thrown out 57 percent of would-be base stealers on the year. The redshirt junior was named to the Johnny Bench Award watch list earlier this year, which is given annually to the top Division I catcher in the country.  
 
CATCH AND THROW
The Dons have enjoyed steady defense all year long as they enter the week boasting the conference's best fielding percentage (.976), led by reigning WCC Defensive Player of the Year in shortstop Nico Giarratano, who has committed just one error in 198 chances.  
 
SHUT IT DOWN
Right-hander Thomas Ponticelli comes into the Pepperdine series tied for second in the WCC with a 2.45 ERA in 10 appearances, including six starts. Ponticelli's .225 batting average against ranks as the fourth-lowest in the WCC this year.
 
SPEED KILLS
The Dons lead the conference with 62 stolen bases as a team. Individually, Matt Sinatro paces the conference with 18 thefts, while Tyler Villaroman (15) and Harrison Bruce (10) rank among the top-10. Sinatro is trying to match last season's total of 26 stolen bases, which was the eighth-most for a single season in USF history. 
 

Scouting Report
 
About Pepperdine
The Waves comes into the weekend on the heels of back-to-back home sweeps by Loyola Marymount and Santa Clara. Pepperdine is in the midst of a nine-game skid, but has series wins over Gonzaga and Portland earlier this season. The Waves ranks near the bottom of the conference in most statistical categories, but have been on the WCC's best defensive squads, ranking third in team fielding percentage (.973). Senior catcher Aaron Barnett leads the team with a .298 batting average, while junior infielder/DH Ben Rodriguez has supplied the power, hitting a team-high four home runs while leading the team with 29 RBI on the year. On the mound, sophomore right-hander Jonathan Pendergast (4-4, 4.31 ERA) ranks in the top-10 in the WCC with a .236 opposing averaging against and 61 strikeouts.     
 
Series Notes Against Pepperdine
Pepperdine owns a 43-23 advantage in the series under head coach Nino Giarratano (since 1999). The Waves have won the last three series and have taken six of the last nine meetings. USF's last series win came when the Dons swept Pepperdine at home in 2013.
   
Last Time Out
The Dons only mustered three hits and Cal scored the game's only run with an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh as USF lost by a 1-0 margin at Evans Diamond on Tuesday night. Allen Smoot recorded two of the USF's hits on the night. Cal pushed across the go-ahead run with two outs in the seventh on Matt Ruff's bouncer up the middle that scored Tanner Dodson, who had reached on a bunt single and advanced to second on an obstruction call against USF second baseman Michael Perri. That proved the difference as USF was unable to take advantage of a strong collective outing on the mound by Sam Granoff, Joey Steele, Scott Parker and Benji Post, who only allowed Cal runners in scoring position in two innings. Granoff again threw well against the Bears after earning the victory in last week's win over Cal, scattering four hits over 5 1/3 scoreless innings while striking out one.
 
On Deck
Following this weekend's series, USF will travel south to face Stanford for a 5:30 p.m. tilt on Tuesday, before playing a four-game nonconference set against San Jose State May 12-15. USF will host the first two games with the final two games being played at San Jose Municipal Stadium.  
 
Fan Guide
                                                         
Promotions
Every Sunday home game this season, the USF Dons are offering the Family 4-Pack. For just $44, fans get 4 reserved seating tickets, 4 Evergood hot dogs, and 4 sodas! Tickets for this Sunday's game can be purchased at USFDons.com.
 
Ticket Information
Individual game tickets for all USF home games at Benedetti Diamond are available online at USFDons.com or by calling (415) 422-2USF. General admission tickets are available for as low as $10, while reserved seats can be purchased for $15. All USFCA faculty, staff and students with a valid ID, and youth 12 and under enter free.
 
Parking Information
Parking on campus for baseball games requires a day-use permit that can be purchased at the parking kiosk in the Hayes-Healy parking lot (located along Golden Gate Ave. in between War Memorial at the Sobrato Center and the Hayes Healy dorms). This permit is also good at the Koret Health and Recreation Center lot (at the corner of Parker Ave. and Turk St.). Street parking is also available around campus, but visitors are reminded to take notice of signs displaying city parking restrictions for each street. Refer to the USF Department of Public Safety parking webpage for a map of parking on campus.