USC’s Currier Pitches In for Win Over UCLA

USC shuffled its starting rotation Friday night in its Pacific 10 Conference series opener against UCLA and the move paid off as junior right-hander Rik Currier came through with an impressive performance.

Currier pitched a five-hitter and struck out 12 as 14th-ranked USC defeated the No. 24 Bruins, 5-1, at Jackie Robinson Stadium.

USC improved to 23-11 overall and took over sole possession of first place in the Pac-10 with a 6-1 record.

UCLA is 20-13 and 5-2 in Pac-10 play.

Currier (8-2) started in place of Trojan ace Mark Prior, who is now scheduled to start today. He retired 15 of 16 at one point and struck out the side in the seventh.

UCLA left-hander Rob Henkel (5-2), who had 61 strikeouts in his last four starts, gave up four runs, four hits and struck out seven in 5 2/3 innings.

USC third baseman Justin Gemoll hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning. The Trojans added two more runs in the sixth on a bases-loaded infield single by Josh Persell. USC scored its final run in the ninth when Jon Brandt hit Seth Davidson with a pitch with the bases loaded.

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Freshman Duke Sardinha hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning against left-hander Billy Traber to power Pepperdine to a 5-4 victory over Loyola Marymount in a West Coast Conference game at Pepperdine.

Pepperdine improved its record to 22-14 overall and 11-1 in WCC play. The Waves have won 10 consecutive conference games.

Loyola, which had won five of six games between the schools in 1998 and 1999, is 21-13 and 9-4 in the WCC.

Sardinha also had a run-scoring single in the first inning.

Daniel Haren (5-3) gave up nine hits and earned the victory with his third complete game.