San Diego (24-24-1, 17-10 WCC)  •  Saint Mary's (21-26, 14-13 WCC)

Las Vegas Ballpark (10,000) • Las Vegas, Nevada

Live Stream • WCC Network  |  Live Statistics  • WCCSports.com

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LAS VEGAS — San Diego baseball (24-24-1, 17-10 WCC) is set to begin its WCC Tournament title defense this week, kicking things off on Wednesday as the event's No. 4 seed with a matchup against fifth-seeded Saint Mary's (21-26, 14-13 WCC).

First pitch at Las Vegas Ballpark (10,000) is set for 7:20 p.m. PST.

Wednesday night's matchup will be streamed live on the WCC Network, and live statistics will be available on WCCSports.com.

SETTING THE STAGE
• The Toreros enter the 2023 WCC Tournament as the event's defending champions after taking home the 2022 title with four consecutive wins last year at Banner Island Ballpark in Stockton, California.

• San Diego's 2022 WCC Tournament Championship win was its first since 2013.

• USD's appearance in the tournament in 2023 marks the first time in program history that San Diego has qualified in back-to-back seasons.

• San Diego began its stirring championship run last year with a comeback win over San Francisco (May 25), then demolished two-seed Portland by a 22-8 margin (May 26) to set the stage for a rematch with rival Gonzaga.

• The conference showdown saw the Toreros win both games against the top-seeded Zags in decisive fashion, first beating them 5-3 (May 27) before completing a thrilling extra-innings comeback for a 15-12 win in the championship game (May 28).

• After the celebration, Jack Costello, Ivran Romero, and Cody Jefferis were named to the 2022 WCC All-Tournament Team. Costello and Romero remain on this year's roster, while Jefferis utilized his final year of eligibility at Michigan.

• The victory advanced USD to the NCAA Corvallis Regional, where USD opened the event with a signature win over perennial powerhouse Vanderbilt, beating the Commodores 3-2 before a packed crowd at Goss Stadium and a national audience watching at home on ESPNU.

ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS SAINT MARY'S
• USD is 91-56-1 all-time against Saint Mary's and has won eight of its last 10 games opposite the Gaels dating back to 2019.

LAST TIME OUT
• The Toreros took two of three from Saint Mary's in Moraga last time out from May 12-14 at Louis Guisto Field, sandwiching a 6-0 Saturday loss with a 4-3 win on Friday and a 10-8 win on Sunday to clinch the series.

FOR STARTERS (PROBABLE)
• Redshirt senior right-hander Ryan Robinson will make his third start of the season and the fourth of his USD career when he takes the mound for the Toreros on Wednesday night afternoon at Las Vegas Ballpark.

• Robinson posted a team-best 7-1 record and a 2.47 ERA across a team-high 21 appearances and 40 innings pitched in the 2023 regular season, striking out 40 batters against just 11 walks while earning a single save.

• After serving as one of San Diego's most high-leverage relievers for the majority of the 2023 season, the Livermore, California native made his first start of the year on May 5 and turned in four strong frames, allowing just one earned run on five hits while walking only one and striking out two.

• He followed that up by shutting Saint Mary's down on May 12 in game one of the Toreros' series in Moraga, firing 5.2 innings of one-run ball while scattering three hits, walking only one, and striking out four.

• His last 9.2 innings pitched have seen him allow just two earned runs on eight hits, striking out six against only two walks in that span.

• Robinson, who joined USD as a transfer from Ohlone College in 2020, received a kidney transplant when he was 10 and had Tommy John surgery in 2017.

HEATING UP AT THE RIGHT TIME
• USD won four consecutive WCC series to finish its 2023 regular season slate (San Francisco, Loyola Marymount, BYU, and Saint Mary's) and prevailed in 10 of its last 13 regular-season conference contests.

RIGHT WHERE THEY WERE LAST YEAR
• Though its position as the four seed is one spot lower than it began the 2022 WCC Tournament, San Diego's final regular-season 2023 WCC record (17-10) and final position in the 2023 regular-season conference standings (tied for second) are identical to where it concluded the regular season a year ago before winning the tournament.

GOLD GLOVES
• USD leads the WCC and ranks 34th in the nation with a .978 fielding percentage in 2023.

BIG BATS
• San Diego's offense was among the most productive in the WCC this season, ranking…

First in walks (230)
- First in hit by pitches (80)
- Second in runs scored (337)
- Second in RBIs (314)
- Second in home runs (55)
- Second in total bases (678)
- Second in stolen bases (67 in 94 attempts)
- Third in on-base percentage (.382)

• The Toreros have hit home runs in consecutive at-bats on two occasions this year:

• March 25 at Santa Clara: back-to-back-to-back home runs (Smith, Peraza, and Sim)      
• April 22 vs. San Francisco: back-to-back home runs (DeCriscio and Gurevitch)

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), their 33-12 mark in 2021, their 37-20 record in 2022, and their 24-24-1 totals so far in 2023, the Toreros are a conference-best 139-82-1 (.628) in that 222-game span.

• Next best within that timeframe are BYU (123-101, .549), Gonzaga (126-105, .545), and Portland (105-94, .527).

SEVEN TOREROS EARN 2023 ALL-WCC HONORS
• Seven Toreros earned 2023 WCC Baseball All-Conference honors, the West Coast Conference announced on Tuesday afternoon.

• San Diego's accolades were led by Angelo Peraza's selection to the All-WCC First Team, followed by Kevin Sim and Austin Smith landing on the All-WCC Second Team, Ariel Armas, Justin DeCriscio, and Ryan Robinson earning All-WCC Honorable Mentions, and Jack Gurevitch being selected to the All-WCC Freshman Team.

Peraza earned a spot on the All-WCC First Team after leading USD in hits (59), batting average (.328), multi-hit games (17), and outfield assists (11) in 2023.

• The Chula Vista, California native started 45 games in right field, two in center field, and one at catcher in 2023 and notched three go-ahead hits in the ninth inning or later this year. He enters Wednesday night's WCC Tournament action on a team-high 29-game reached-base streak.

• His All-WCC First Team honor is the first major conference honor of his college career. Peraza was named a WCC All-Academic Honorable Mention in 2022.

Sim was named to the All-WCC Second Team after putting together an explosive offensive season that remains impressive despite him missing USD's final 11 games in 2023 due to injury.

• The San Diego, California native batted .298 (42-for-141) in 2023 while scoring 44 runs, notching 40 RBIs, walking 24 times, and stealing nine bases.

• His 13 home runs in 2023 were tied for third in the WCC and were the most of any conference player with 38 games played or less this season.

• Sim is a two-time WCC Player of the Week (February 19, 2023 and March 14, 2022) and has been previously selected to the All-WCC Preseason Team (2023) and the All-WCC First Team (2022).

Smith picked up a selection to the All-WCC Second Team after excelling both as a position player and pitcher in 2023.

• He batted .312 (29-for-93) in conference play this season with a team-high 25 RBIs and 19 walks while posting a 4-2 record, a save, a 3.71 ERA, and a 10.85 K/9 in 34.0 innings pitched on the mound.

• Smith has both started, pitched in middle relief, and closed games for USD in 2023. The selection to the 2023 All-WCC Second Team is the first conference honor of his college career.

Armas earned an All-WCC Honorable Mention after batting .292 (21-for-72) in conference play with 11 runs scored, eight doubles, three home runs, 15 RBIs, 11 walks, four hit by pitches, and a stolen base.

• The Chula Vista, California native has started 30 of USD's 48 games in 2023 at catcher and has thrown out six would-be base stealers.

• His selection as a 2023 All-WCC Honorable Mention is the first conference accolade of his college career.

DeCriscio was named an All-WCC Honorable Mention after an impressive sophomore season that saw him become San Diego's most consistent hitter.

• The Orange, California native batted .325 (55-for-169) in the 2023 regular season with 38 runs scored, nine doubles, a triple, three home runs, 19 RBIs, 11 walks, five hit by pitches, and a team-high 13 stolen bases in 19 attempts.

• His 17 multi-hit games in 2023 were tied for the USD lead with Angelo Peraza and his 13-game hit streak was the longest by any San Diego player this season.

• DeCriscio started 39 of the Toreros' 44 games at shortstop in 2023 en route to his first-ever conference award.

Robinson has earned an All-WCC Honorable Mention in all three years he's spent in San Diego (2023, 2022, and 2021) after joining the Toreros as a transfer from Ohlone College in 2020.

Gurevitch was selected to the All-WCC Freshman Team after making an immediate impact in his first college season, starting 43 of San Diego's 44 games this year (33 at first base, 10 as the designated hitter), while batting .270 (43-for-159) with 22 runs scored, seven doubles, three triples, six home runs, and 28 RBIs.

His 26 walks this season are the third-most on the USD roster, and on April 16 he lifted San Diego to a key walk-off win over Portland with a ninth-inning RBI single.

Gurevitch's selection to the 2023 All-WCC Freshman Team is the first conference honor of his college career.

THE RESILIENCE IS REAL
• The Toreros' walk-off win over San Francisco on April 22 was their fourth walk-off of 2023 and their 13th at Fowler Park since 2021 (USD achieved five walk-off victories in 2022 and four in 2021).

• USD was 15-6-1 (.673) at Fowler Park in 2023 and is 309-207-2 (.598) at the venue since it opened in 2013.

NOTABLE SAN DIEGO COMEBACKS THIS SEASON
• February 19 vs. Nebraska:  Trailed 8-2, won 10-9 on Angelo Peraza's walk-off single

• February 20 vs. Nebraska: Trailed 16-10 entering predetermined final inning (travel restrictions), scored six runs to earn 16-16 tie after game-tying three-run homer from Jack Costello

• February 26 vs. UNLV: Trailed 3-0, won 6-5 on Jack Costello's walk-off single

• March 18 vs. Pacific: Trailed 6-1, won 16-6 after 10-run eighth inning

• April 1 vs. Pepperdine: Trailed 4-0, won 8-4 after Austin Smith's go-ahead grand slam

• April 16 vs. Portland: Trailed 3-0, won 7-6 on Jack Gurevitch's walk-off RBI single

• April 22 vs. San Francisco: Trailed 5-3, won 6-5 on Will Worthington's walk-off RBI single

TOP PERFORMERS LAST TIME OUT AT SAINT MARY'S (MAY 12-14)
Dustin Allen | JR | CF | Arcadia, CA | Arcadia High School
• Led USD by batting .556 (5-for-9) in Moraga with three runs scored, two doubles, two solo home runs (one of the inside-the-park variety), two walks, and 13 total bases

• Both home runs came in the Sunday series finale on May 14

• His home run-robbing catch on May 4 versus BYU was the No. 1 play on SportsCenter's Top 10 Plays that night

James Arakawa | GR | UTIL | Walnut, CA | Pacific | Walnut High School
• Batted .375 (3-for-8) with two runs scored, a double, and a walk against the Gaels

• Transferred to USD after spending four seasons at WCC foe Pacific

Angelo Peraza | JR | UTIL | Chula Vista, CA | St. Augustine High School 
• 4-for-12 (.333) at Saint Mary's with two runs scored, a double, a walk, and two stolen bases

• Has played three different positions for USD in 2023 (catcher, center field, right field)

• Leads USD in hits (59), batting average (.328), and outfield assists (11), is tied for team-lead in multi-hit games (17), has notched three go-ahead hits in the ninth inning or later this year

• Enters Wednesday night's action on a team-high 29-game reached-base streak

Jack Gurevitch | FR | INF/DH | Pacific Palisades, CA | Notre Dame High School
• Hit .308 (4-for-13) against the Gaels with a run scored, three doubles, a triple, and two RBIs

• 26 walks in 2023 rank third on USD roster

CLUTCH COSTELLO
• Though he has been out of the lineup since April 11 with a hand injury, utility player Jack Costello remains one of the WCC's most fearsome hitters.

• He hit five home runs across three games at Fowler Park from February 20th - February 26, including two homers in back-to-back contests against both Nebraska (February 20) and Hawaii (February 24) and one more on February 26 opposite UNLV.

Costello's homers so far this season have included:      

          - A go-ahead grand slam (February 20 vs. Nebraska)

          - A game-tying three-run shot (February 20 vs. Nebraska)

          - A go-ahead two-run shot (February 26 vs. UNLV)

          - Two go-ahead solo shots (March 2 at Oregon and April 4 at UC San Diego)

• He also notched a walk-off single against UNLV on February 26.

• Costello was named both the NCAA National and the West Coast Conference Player of the Week on February 27 and earned his second consecutive All-WCC Preseason Team selection in January.

• He earned WCC All-Tournament Team honors and was an WCC All-Academic Honorable Mention in 2022 after powering San Diego to the WCC Tournament Championship with a go-ahead two-RBI single and a go-ahead solo home run in San Diego's 15-12 extra-innings win over Gonzaga at Banner Island Ballpark.

• The Simi Valley, California native was named a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American, an All-WCC Freshman Team selection, and an All-WCC Honorable Mention after his college debut in 2021.

CONNER THURMAN THINGS
• Redshirt junior right-hander Conner Thurman has excelled down the stretch for USD this season, pitching his way to a 1-0 record and a team-best 2.00 ERA in 2023 across 18.0 innings by striking out 24 batters and walking only three.

• His 14-4 career record and .777 career winning percentage as a Torero rank third in program history, and his 12.84 career K/9 across three-plus seasons at USD is a program record.