The Utah Valley baseball team went 1-1 during the Saturday and Sunday games against the Dixie State Trailblazers after losing 12-1 on Saturday, March 5, and routing the Trailblazers 8-3 on Sunday, March 6. After going 1-2 overall this weekend, the Wolverines are now 3-8 overall this season, having their third straight losing weekend to start the season.
The Trailblazers outhit the Wolverines 38-30 throughout the weekend and outscored the Wolverines 31-19, along with walking 18 times. The Wolverines also left 26 runners on base and struck out 31 times this weekend.
The Saturday game was dismal for the Wolverines as starting pitcher Cole Yocum suffered two runs, one unearned due to an error from a passed ball. The Wolverines would again surrender two runs in the second inning, with a two-run home run by Shane Taylor to make the score 4-0.
The Wolverines would then go on to surrender eight runs in the third inning, including a grand slam by Mathew Ivancich to go up 12-0, relief pitcher Coop Rust would come in for Yocum. The Wolverines would score in the fourth inning, with Paul Vossen hitting an RBI double to bring home Connor Hall.
The rest of the game would go scoreless for both teams as the final result would be a 12-1 favor of the Trailblazers. UVU was only able to come up with four total team hits while the Trailblazers had 10. The Wolverines also allowed seven walks and struck out seven times.
The Sunday game fared well for the Wolverines as pitcher Mason Gray held the Trailblazers scoreless through the first three innings. The Wolverines would burst onto the board first with a four-run inning. Drew Sims would bunt-single to bring home Garrett Broussard. A wild pitch by DSU pitcher Jimmy Borzone allowed Mick Madsen to return to home plate. Trey Cutchen would single through the right side to bring home Sims and Hall would single through the left side to bring home Cutchen. The Trailblazers would respond with three runs to make the score 4-3.
The game would go scoreless into the eighth inning where the Wolverines would score two more runs. Brody Ponti would reach base on a fielder’s choice and then an erroneous throw by Trailblazer second baseman Tyler Hollow would allow Cutchen to round third and score. Moralez would follow him and score as well, giving the Wolverines a 6-3 edge.
The Wolverines would then seal the deal in the ninth inning with Broussard hitting a leadoff home run. Kyle Coburn would later score off of a passed ball to give the Wolverines an 8-3 lead. The Wolverines would then finish DSU with a quick 1-2-3 inning.
The Wolverines, despite having 13 hitters strikeout and 12 runners left on base, went off for 12 hits. The Wolverines’ pitching and defense would hold DSU to just six hits, seven hitters who struck out, and strand eight runners on base.
The Wolverines will now travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, to take on the UNLV Rebels at Earl E. Wilson Stadium. The first pitch for the two-game series will take place Monday, March 7, at 7:05 p.m. MT. The game can be streamed on the UNLVAthletics YouTube channel.
