No. 17 USC opened a crucial series at PK Park with No. 16 Oregon on Friday, taking a game that carried weight far beyond one night in late-season baseball. The Trojans entered at 41-12 and 19-8 in the Big Ten, while the Ducks came in at 36-14 and 18-9, with higher conference seeding and NCAA tournament regional hosting on the line.
USC turned to Adam Troy on the mound after Johnson’s outing, and the sequence quickly became the kind of game that can swing a weekend. Johnson worked 3.1 innings, struck out three, allowed four hits, one run and one error, and faced 13 batters before the Trojans moved on. Oregon had a small opening when Jaksa singled and reached first while Smith took second, but the Ducks could not cash it in. Johnson also delivered a 1-2-3 inning by getting Cooney and Laya, showing enough to keep USC in front as the pressure built.
Then Cadena changed the feel of the night. In extra time, he homered to right field and gave USC the lead, the kind of swing that can settle a tense series opener and shift the mood inside the park. Oregon answered with Josh Schleichardt grounding out, but Lopez flied out to end the inning and leave the Ducks empty-handed. For a team that entered the series needing results, that was the sort of missed chance that can linger.
The setting made the loss heavier for Oregon. The series was the Ducks’ final three-game home set at PK Park, and it arrived with their postseason path still tied to the weekend. Oregon was not only chasing Big Ten tournament position; it also had a chance to strengthen its case to host an NCAA regional series. That made every inning matter, and it gave USC a chance to damage both goals at once.
That is what made Friday more than a regular conference game. Oregon had framed the series as a make-or-break opportunity, and the opening result left the Ducks needing a fast response to keep control of the rest of the weekend. USC, meanwhile, did what good road teams do in that spot: it stayed close, waited for one swing, and used it to seize the first game.
