May 16, 2006
PROVO, Utah - BYU (27-26) got a home run and four runs batted in by senior Ben Saylor on its way to a 10-3 win over Utah Valley State (17-35) on senior night in Provo.
Wolverine junior Dan Bulow delivered a tape-measure two-run blast for his 11th home run of the year in the fourth inning, but five Utah Valley errors helped BYU to four unearned runs in the ballgame.
The Cougars also got a home run and three RBI from freshman Kent Walton, but the night belonged to the seniors as BYU coach Vance Law sent four seniors to the mound on the night.
Anthony Bingham (1-1) threw three innings and allowed just one hit in earning the win while Dan Christensen (0-4) suffered the loss.
The Wolverines scored first on an RBI double by freshman Chris Benson that scored Brad Hales in the top of the first.
The Cougars came back with two runs in the bottom of the first and then four more unearned runs in the third capped by Walton's home run to take a 6-1 lead.
Utah Valley dented the lead in the fourth after Bulow's homer cut the lead to 6-3.
BYU added a run in the fifth on an RBI triple by Walton and then three in the sixth, two of which came on Saylor's 18th home run of 2006.
Adam Openshaw led Utah Valley State with two hits on the night as the Wolverines failed to reach double figures in hits for the first time since April 25th at Utah.
The win gives BYU the 3-1 series win as the Cougars also improve to 7-2 all-time over Utah Valley.
Utah Valley State will now travel to Sioux Fall, South Dakota for the Division-I Independent Tournament to close out the season.
They will take on host South Dakota State on Thursday at 7:30pm CT followed by a Friday matchup with New York Tech at 4:00pm CT. Bracketed play will then begin on Saturday with the championship game on Sunday. All six teams in the tournament are guaranteed to play four games.
