Good morning! Happy Monday, everyone. Let’s all start the week off like ace in the hole Cade Aoki finished it on the diamond this weekend… with a win.

What all can you find in today's Brew?

🤽‍♀️ Goin’ out on top
📝 A new frontier
⚔️ And much, much more!

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 High Note. USC women’s tennis wrapped up the regular season in dominating fashion, defeating Hawaii 4-1 this weekend to enter the postseason riding momentum with a 16-8 record.

The Women of Troy went back-to-back in doubles play after partners Snow Han and Isabelle Lee got their win 6-4, and Maddy Sieg and Naomi Cheong went the distance, and grabbed the doubles point with a 7-6 (2) win. It was more of the same in the singles play, with USC coming away with three of four points to earn the win. No. 8 singles player in the nation, Maddy Sieg, dominated in her match and will look to lead the Trojans this postseason.

The focus now turns to the Pac-12 tournament in Ojai, CA this Wednesday through Saturday. Stay tuned to the Brew, because we are sure to serve some updates for these girls soon.

🔼 Walk It Off. Wins are fun, but throw in a walk-off hit and add in the fact it was UCLA, and… well… it makes it that much sweeter.

The Trojans entered Sunday evening’s matchup with the Bruins with the series tied, but Johnny Olmstead and Ethan Hedges started things off right with two solo shots to put USC up 2-0 early in the second inning. Starting pitcher Blake Sodersten held the Bruins to zero runs in his five innings allowing just two hits with six strikeouts.

Things heated up in the seventh inning with UCLA scoring four in the top of the inning to give them the lead, but it was brief thanks to Bryce Grudzielanik-Martin’s second RBI of the night on a sacrifice fly to tie game. After a scoreless eighth, Garrett Clarke came in to keep the game all square, and did so, sending the Trojans into the bottom of the inning after an electric strikeout.

Enter the star of the night, Cole Gabrielson, who (with the bases loaded) jacked a ball to deep left field just over the head of the defender to send the game-winning runner home. Nobody was keeping the team off the field, and the players celebrated together on the diamond in front of the roars of a sold out crowd for their first home series win against UCLA since 2005.

After enjoying the win, the Trojans will get ready for their mid-week matchup against UC San Diego tomorrow night.

🔼 Goin’ Out On Top. It was a big opportunity this weekend for USC to beat the Bruins, and our No. 1 ranked water polo squad cash in on said opportunity.

The Trojans defeated UCLA 14-9 to earn their 13th straight win to close out the regular season. As they say, defense wins championships, and USC’s defense played like a championship team after allowing single digit goals to the third ranked team in the country, and for the sixth time in their last eight games.

USC never trailed in the match thanks to Paige Hauschild’s first-half hat trick and Tilly Kearns’ five goal day. It’s hard to lose if your best players are scoring that many goals! The Trojans will now prepare for the MPSF Tournament next weekend as the tournament’s top seeded team. They were rewarded with the first-round bye, and will have to win just two games to come away with the title.

🔼 Securing Number 34. Trojan tennis finished the day hoisting a trophy, and if that isn’t squad goals, I don’t know what is.

The 19th ranked men’s tennis team secured a share of the regular season conference title after defeating Utah, their first since 2015. The Trojans dominated the match with Stefan Donstanic and Ryan Colby taking match three and the sole doubles point and three of four singles points. Peter Makk played in the title clinching match, beating his opponent in straight sets to give the Trojans the 4-1 win.

The conference title is the 34th in program history, and the Trojans finished the season with a 16-7 record, 6-2 in conference play. Now USC will focus on the upcoming Pac-12 Championship tournament where they will hope to pair their regular season title with a postseason title.

🔼 A New Frontier. Name, Image, and Likeness has become a necessary investment for all colleges across America, and USC is no different. Student-athlete success and empowerment is important to all athletic programs, and USC has launched the newest way they plan to succeed on the NIL front.

Introducing: The Shield. The Shield will serve as a guide for people to learn about USC’s NIL program and give fans, families, and prospects a more robust outlook on how the Athletic Department plans on being the most student-athlete centered program in the country.

In addition to The Shield, USC also launched Trojan Marketplace, a platform that the university hopes to easily connect athletes with brands, businesses, donors, and other NIL opportunities available. It’s all about connections, and USC has made making those connections easier than ever before.

The landscape of NIL is still coming into view, but USC has a strong grip of how to make the most of each opportunity, and a strong vision of the future of NIL for the university. Read more about USC’s vision for the future of NIL here.

🤔 TROJAN TRIVIA

Squad Goals. Our water polo squad consists of the best players in the world, with Olympians, All-Americans, and multiple players with national championships. This 2023 squad is special, and not to mention, goal scoring machines.

Our question today—do you know how many current players are listed in the Top 25 USC career scoring list?

Think you got it? Scroll on down to the bottom of this email for the answer!

⚔️ ONE BIG THING

Lincoln Riley reported in for his last press conference to wrap up USC’s spring camp. Several days after the Spring Game, Coach Riley laid out his thoughts on the performance, shared his evaluations, and gave insight on what’s coming next for the Trojans.

The main takeaway from his interview: “With as quickly as this season’s going to come, we’ve got to have an elite three months and really be ready to go on July 27th.”

Lincoln Riley, Caleb Williams, and the rest of the crew will come into the season ranked seventh in the nation, and it seems from what all that Riley had to say, the Trojans will bring their best selves.

📬 STICK WITH US

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📅 THE DAY AHEAD

Monday 4/24

No scheduled events

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: 4 players

Bayley Weber (9), Paige Hauschild (11), Grace Tehaney (15), and Tilly Kearns (17) are all active players who are listed in the top-25 goal scorers in USC history. They have scored a combined 706 goals throughout their career, and they’re not done yet!

Have a great Monday, everyone!