OREM, Utah – Craig Brinkerhoff hit a three-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth as Utah Valley University clinched its WAC series with an 11-8 win over Northern Colorado on Saturday night at Brent Brown Ballpark.
 
Brinkerhoff's blast -- to left center -- scored Spencer Gothberg and Zac Willis. Gothberg nearly ended the game earlier in the inning when he doubled off the top of the wall in right with one out. Willis was then walked intentionally before Brinkerhoff's game-winner.
 
"Kudos to Brinkerhoff. It's awesome for him. He has the ability every time he comes to the plate and really focused and came up big," UVU head coach Eric Madsen said. "I thought we did a good job early but coasted a little and allowed them back into it. The game was pretty sloppy tonight."
 
The Wolverines (18-14, 5-3) built a 7-2 advantage after three innings, but saw the Bears (5-22, 0-5) run off six consecutive runs to take an 8-7 lead before coming back to win their third straight.
 
Brinkerhoff also scored three runs in addition to his three RBIs while Justin Erlandson went 3-for-3 and Jordan Schlehuber had two hits and two batted in.
 
Kyle Valgardson (3-1) picked up the win after 1.2 scoreless innings. He came on in and 8-8 game in the eighth with two on and one out and struck out Ryan Yamane and Corey Nakakura to preserve the tie. He also struck out Jacob Ek with the bases loaded in the ninth to again keep the game at 8-8.

"Kyle did great job coming in there and getting those big strikeouts and then working out of it in the ninth. To have some of our seniors step tonight when it mattered was great," Madsen said.
 
The Wolverines jumped ahead with two in the first following a Stone Ramsey RBI triple and a sac fly from Mark Krueger. Willis led off the bottom of the second with a solo home run, his third of the season, to start a three-run second for UVU. In the third, Schlehuber hit the second of his two RBI singles to extend the lead to 7-2.
 
Northern Colorado used the long ball to tie the game, getting a two-run home run from Nick Tanner in the fourth and a three-run blast from Cole Maltese – his second of the series – tying it at 7-7. The Bears then took an 8-7 lead on an RBI single by Jake Garcia in the seventh.
 
UVU caught a break in the bottom of the seventh when UNC catcher Payton Tapia was called for obstruction with Krueger in a rundown at third, awarding him home and tying the game at 8-8.
 
The series concludes on Sunday with a noon MT first pitch with the Wolverines seeking their first series sweep of the season.


 
NOTES: The walk-off win was Utah Valley's third of the season. Portland (March 12) and North Dakota (April 2) are the others … Krueger extended his hitting streak to 15 games with a single in the seventh inning.