Zito’s Two-Hitter Isn’t Enough as USC Loses to Stanford, 1-0

USC’s baseball team found itself in unfamiliar territory after losing to Stanford, 1-0, Friday night in the opening game of a best-of-three NCAA super-regional at Sunken Diamond.

The defending national champion Trojans were coping with being on the short end of a shutout for the first time this season. Stanford sophomore Jason Young did the honors, scattering eight hits and striking out 10 before a crowd of 3,708.

USC was also dealing with life after Barry Zito’s winning streak. The junior left-hander, who had won 11 consecutive decisions, pitched a two-hitter but suffered his first loss since Feb. 19.

And finally, the Trojans (36-25) could not escape the fact that their season could end today--with Stanford advancing to the College World Series--if they do not defeat the Cardinal (47-13) in a 1 p.m. game.

USC senior right-hander Justin Lehr (7-2, 4.11 earned-run average) will start today against sophomore right-hander Justin Wayne (8-1, 5.12).

“We’ve played them too much [to be overconfident],” Stanford Coach Mark Marquess said. “We’ve won the first game before and then lost two, and they have done the same.”

Zito (12-3), selected by the Oakland Athletics with the ninth pick in the amateur draft on Wednesday, gave up his only hits and the only run in the sixth inning.

Cardinal shortstop Eric Bruntlett led off the bottom of the sixth by hitting what looked like a routine fly ball to center field.

It was anything but that for Trojan center fielder Brad Ticehurst, who lost it in the lights and watched it fall in as Bruntlett hustled to second base with a double.

“It’s always tough at dusk,” said Zito, who struck out eight. “You can never predict what’s going to happen.”

Billy Jacobson’s sacrifice bunt moved Bruntlett to third and Jeff Rizzo hit an 0-2 pitch into the left-field corner for a double that drove in the winning run.

USC catcher Eric Munson provided a brief glimmer of hope for the Trojans when he walked to lead off the ninth inning.

But with Dominic Correa at the plate, Munson was caught in a rundown between first and second on a botched hit-and-run play for the second time in the game.

Young struck out Correa, then survived a scare when Ticehurst hit a 1-2 pitch out of the park near the right-field foul pole. First base umpire Randy Bruns called it foul, and Young struck out Ticehurst to end the game.

“I knew Zito was going to come in and do his job,” said Young (11-3), who pitched his second shutout of the season. “I knew that I had to do my job and not worry about if we were going to hit or score.”

Young is 2-1 against the Trojans this season. On Feb. 27, he pitched a four-hitter and struck out 10 in a 5-2 Cardinal victory. On April 16, he gave up six runs in 4 2/3 innings in a 10-1 defeat.

And on Friday night, he shut down the Trojans every time they threatened.

USC could not capitalize on opportunities in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings.

The Trojans loaded the bases in the fourth with two out, but Young struck out Ticehurst looking on a 3-2 pitch.