San Diego (17-4, 5-1 WCC)  •  Vanguard (NAIA, 27-7, 15-5 GSAC)
San Diego •  Pepperdine
Fowler Park (1,700) •  San Diego, California
Live Stream/Television  •  WCC Network /ESPNU |  Live Statistics  •   USDToreros.com
Social  •  Twitter.com/USDBaseball  •  Instagram.com/USDBaseball

SAN DIEGO — San Diego baseball (17-4, 5-1 WCC) continues an eight-game homestand by welcoming Vanguard (NAIA, 27-7, 15-5 GSAC) to Fowler Park for a midweek non-conference tuneup before continuing West Coast Conference play against Pepperdine this weekend.

First pitch against the Lions on Tuesday is set for 5 p.m., and USD's matchups with the Waves are scheduled for 6 p.m. (Thursday), 6 p.m. (Friday), and 5 p.m. (Saturday).

The Toreros' first three games this week (3/30 vs. Vanguard, 4/1 vs. Pepperdine, and 4/2 vs. Pepperdine) will be streamed live on the WCC Network, and Saturday's series finale against the Waves (4/3) will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU.

Longtime Torero broadcaster Jack Murray will be calling the action on the WCC Network, and Roxy Bernstein (play-by-play) and Wes Clements (analyst) will have the call on ESPNU on April 3.

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST VANGUARD
• Tuesday evening's game will be the first-ever meeting between USD and Vanguard.

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST PEPPERDINE
• San Diego is 76-130 against the Waves all-time, with the two programs' most recent meeting coming on February 14, 2020, a 5-4 USD loss at Tempe Diablo Stadium in Arizona that was part of the Angels College Classic tournament.

• The Toreros have gone 4-6 in their last 10 matchups with Pepperdine, but are 7-4 at home versus the Waves since Fowler Park opened in 2013.

FOR STARTERS (PROBABLE)
TUESDAY: Sophomore Jack Dolak will make his first start of the 2021 season on Tuesday night against Vanguard.

• Dolak, a 6-4 right-hander from San Diego, CA (St. Augustine High School), has thrown just 1.2 innings so far this season in three total appearances.

• Named the WCC Pitcher of the Week on March 16, 2020, Dolak appeared in six games last season, collecting 20 strikeouts in 13.2 innings of work before he finished with a 4.61 ERA and a 1-0 record.

THURSDAY: Sophomore Jake Miller will start USD's first game of a series for the seventh week in a row when he takes the mound against Pepperdine on Thursday.

• Miller is 3-1 with a 2.63 ERA so far this season, is tied for the team lead in innings pitched (27.1), and leads the team in total strikeouts (41).

• In his most recent outing versus Pacific last Friday, the 6-2 righty struck out 10 through just 4.2 innings pitched, scattering five hits and walking only one while surrendering zero earned runs.

• His 10-strikeout performance against the Tigers on 3/26 marked the second time Miller has fanned 10 batters (3/12 vs. UC Riverside).

FRIDAY: Redshirt sophomore Conner Thurman will reprise his role as San Diego's game two starter on Friday against Pepperdine, making his fourth consecutive mid-weekend start.

• Thurman is 2-1 with a 1.65 ERA so far this season, is tied for the team lead in innings pitched with Miller (27.1), and is just one strikeout shy of Miller's team-leading 41 strikeouts.

• In his most recent outing versus Pacific last Saturday, Thurman threw 4.2 innings, allowing zero earned runs while scattering five hits, walking three, and striking out four..

• Thurman was named the WCC Pitcher of the Week on March 16.

SATURDAY: Freshman Brycen Mautz (Westview High School) will make his fourth start for USD in the nationally-televised series finale versus the Waves.

• The 6-3 lefty is 2-0 with a 5.52 ERA in six appearances so far in 2021.

• His last three starts have seen him allow just three earned runs in 10.1 combined innings, allowing just five hits in that span.

• In his most recent outing on Sunday versus Pacific, Mautz allowed an earned run in 1.2 frames, allowing two hits, walking two, and striking out one.

LAST TIME OUT
• The Toreros executed a convincing three-game sweep (their third of the 2021 season) over conference opponent Pacific last weekend, beating the Tigers 3-1 (3/26), 15-3 (3/27), and 5-1 (3/28) as they outscored them by a 23-5 margin.

• San Diego has now won 17 of its last 20 games, is on a five-game win streak, and has prevailed in each of its last five series (Cal State Fullerton, UC San Diego, UC Riverside, Saint Mary's College, University of the Pacific).

BEST 20-GAME START IN NEARLY 20 YEARS
• The Toreros' 17-4 start through their first 21 games this season is the team's best since 2002, when fourth-year head coach Rich Hill led his team to a 18-3 record to begin the season, a campaign that saw his squad win 10 games in a row to begin the year.

POLL POSITION
• For the second week in a row, USD came in at No. 29 in the Collegiate Baseball national poll.

• The Toreros' recent ranking marks 15 years in a row of the team being nationally ranked by at least one national college baseball publication.

MCGUIRE MASHING
• Shane McGuire was at the center of San Diego baseball's success last week, going 8-16 (.500) with five RBIs, six runs scored, two doubles, two walks, a stolen base, and a home run across a game at USC and three conference contests versus Pacific.

• Last Tuesday night (3/23) in Los Angeles against the Trojans, McGuire delivered an RBI double down the right field line in the top of the ninth inning to tie the game at five runs apiece, helping the Toreros earn a comeback win.

• And in his team's weekend sweep of the Tigers, the Kent, Washington native recorded at least one hit in each game, going 4-4 with a home run, four RBIs, three runs scored, a double, and a walk on Saturday before going 2-2 with two runs scored in the series finale on Sunday.

• McGuire is now batting .359 (28-78) with 32 runs scored so far this season, which leads the team and ranks third in the nation.

• He also earned a spot on D1Baseball.com's "Top 30 Catchers" list on March 23, coming in at No. 9 in the national position ranking.

REMARKABLE START CONTINUES FOR ROMERO
• True freshman Ivran Romero (Poway High School) has now thrown 20 consecutive scoreless innings out of the bullpen to begin his college career.

• Nearly all of his outings have come in high-leverage situations, and the San Diego native has pitched three innings or more in five of his nine relief appearances so far this season.

• That includes Sunday afternoon's series finale against Pacific, when the young right-hander tossed three scoreless frames while allowing only three hits and striking out four.

COSTELLO STAYS HOT
• Though his team-best 12-game hit streak came to an end on Friday against the Tigers, true freshman Jack Costello has remained one of the Toreros' most dynamic hitters thus far in 2021.

• He rebounded from that rare 0-4 performance to record another three hits in Saturday's contest, marking his team-high 11th multi-hit game this season.

• The Simi Valley, California native is now batting a WCC-high .433 on the year with 10 RBIs, 16 runs scored, seven doubles, a triple and a home run.

• On March 25, Costello was one of ten players named to Baseball America's Freshman of the Year award watch list.

KUNST MUSCLES UP
• Graduate student Paul Kunst notched his first two home runs of the 2021 season last weekend against Pacific, with each coming at an opportune time for the Toreros.

• His first homer  — a solo shot to left field — tied Friday's game at one run apiece, answering an early score by the Tigers.

• And his second — also a solo shot to left field — gave his team an early lead in Saturday's contest that it would not relinquish.

• After missing the first four games of the season with an injury, Kunst is batting .375 (21-56) with 15 RBIs, 14 runs scored, and a double so far in 2021. Additionally, his four sacrifice flies ranks fifth in the nation.

JEFFERIS STAYS STEADY
• Sophomore shortstop Cody Jefferis has been perhaps the Toreros' most consistent hitter thus far, posting a .384 (33-86) batting average with 19 RBIs, 17 runs scored, eight doubles, and 44 total bases though all 21 of San Diego's games.

• One of just just five USD players to have started every game and the only one to have started every game at one position, Jefferis kept up his productive ways at the plate against Pacific, notching hits in all three contests and multiple hits in two out of the three games against the Tigers.
• The Valencia, California native has also provided plus defense up the middle, frequently saving runs and taking hits away with his diving stops.

ALLEN IMPRESSES IN EARLY OFFERINGS
• True freshman Dustin Allen made the most of his first college start on Friday against Pacific, going 2-3 with an RBI double.

• The Arcadia, California native set forth an even more impressive performance the following night, going 4-4 with three runs scored on Saturday against the Tigers.

TORERO BATS LEAD THE WAY
• San Diego's 180 runs scored through Sunday (3/29) leads the WCC by a 26-run margin, and the team's offense as a whole has topped the charts in several categories within the conference.

Those categories include:
Hits (241), First in WCC
Doubles (60), First in WCC
RBIs (166), First in WCC
Batting average (.327), First in WCC
On-base percentage (.412), First in WCC
Slugging percentage (.501), First in WCC

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE
• USD's team batting average (.327) ranks second in the nation, and the Toreros' hot start at the plate has propelled the the team into the top 20 of several offensive categories within all of NCAA Division I.

Those categories include:
(Categories in which San Diego is in the top five are in bold)
Batting average (.327), 2nd in the NCAA
Total hits (241), 7th in the NCAA
On Base Percentage (.412), 14th in the NCAA
Slugging Percentage (.501), 9th in the NCAA
Runs scored (180), 10th in the NCAA
Doubles (60), 2nd in the NCAA
Doubles per game (2.86) 1st in the NCAA
Hit by Pitch (45), 3rd in the NCAA
Sacrifice Flies (17), 1st in the NCAA

RBI MACHINES
• San Diego's explosive start at the plate in 2021 has also helped vault four Toreros to the top of the WCC's offensive leaderboards.

• Graduate student Thomas Luevano (first), senior Adam Lopez (second), junior Shane McGuire (fourth) and sophomore Cody Jefferis (eighth) each own a spot on the conference's list of top RBI producers.

QUALITY AT-BATS
• Similarly, three Toreros have found themselves ranked in the NCAA's top 20 list of "Toughest players to Strike Out."

• Adam Lopez leads the way with a ranking of No. 7, Paul Kunst checks in at No. 16, and Shane McGuire came in at No. 20.

BEST IN THE WEST (COAST CONFERENCE)
• From the beginning of the 2019 season until now, no team in the West Coast Conference has had a better record than San Diego baseball. Combining their 2019 record (32-21), their abbreviated 2020 totals (12-4), and their 17-4 mark so far this year, the Toreros are a conference-best 61-29 (.677) in that 90-game span.

• Next best within that timeframe are Saint Mary's (58-41, .585) and BYU (51-39, .566).