April 8, 2011

NEWARK, New Jersey -- The fourth time was the charm as Utah Valley survived three extra-inning comebacks by NJIT to win 9-8 in 14 innings to sweep a doubleheader from the Highlanders on the opening day of Great West Conference action.

The Wolverines (9-16, 2-0) also won the first game 5-3 with two runs in the ninth inning and have now won 12 straight GWC games going back to 2010. The second game lasted four hours and 48 minutes and the two games combined equaled nearly eight hours of baseball.

The 14-inning game sets a new school record for innings played, surpassing last season's 13-inning win over Southern Utah.

With the scored tied at 3-3 after nine innings, UVU got a two-out double from Alex Exon to take a 5-3 lead.

NJIT (5-17, 0-2) answered with two runs in the bottom of the 10th to keep the game going and then, after Goose Kallunki's double scored Austin Heaps in the 12th, the Highlanders tied it again in the bottom of the inning on a wild pitch.

In the 13th, Heaps got his fourth hit of the game with a clutch, two-out, bases-loaded single to score two and give UVU an 8-6 lead.

NJIT again tied it in the bottom of the inning when Vinnie Del Vecchio's two-out single knotted the game.

The Wolverines caught a break in the 14th when Jason Zundel reached on an error to begin the inning. Exon sacrificed Zundel to second before he took third on a wild pitch. Kai Hatch, who drove home two early runs with a base hit, singled into left for the game-winner and finished with three RBI in the game.

Josh Swenson retired NJIT 1-2-3 in the 14th to complete his longest outing of the year, 4.1 innings, and get the win. Preston Olson threw 5.0 innings in relief, also his longest outing as a Wolverine, and struck out five.

Mark Leiter started the game for Highlanders and pitched 9.0 complete innings, striking out a school-record 13 batters.

In the first game, Cole McWhorter went 2-for-2 with a home run, three RBI and three stolen bases in the 5-3 win. His fly ball scored Kirk Doxey in the first and then, with Utah Valley trailing 2-1 in the fifth, McWhorter blasted a two-run home run to left to give the Wolverines a 3-2 lead.

Teddy Bickert tied it with a solo home run in the bottom of the fifth to make it 3-3, where the score stayed until the ninth.

Doxey walked and McWhorter sacrificed him to second before NJIT intentionally walked Chris Benson. Heaps then hit a fly ball to left that would have scored Doxey regardless, but the leftfielder dropped the ball allowing two runs to come in.

Ryan Chadwick threw 2.0 scoreless innings and got the win following 7.0 innings of work from Blake Krahenbuhl.

The four-game series continues with a 6:30p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. MT start on Saturday from Bears and Eagle Riverfront Stadium.