IRVINE, Calif. – After falling behind by two runs early and then again in the sixth inning, the Utah Valley University baseball team rallied for six runs in the eighth and ninth innings to secure an 8-5 victory at Anteater Ballpark on Saturday afternoon.
The win improves Utah Valley's record to 6-11 for the year and snaps a four-game losing streak. The Wolverines recorded seven RBI's on 10 hits and got over six solid innings of work from starting pitcher
Jackson Cofer, who struck out five batters.
The Anteaters jumped out to an early lead as they opened the second inning by placing runners on second and third base. Griffin Mazur then singled for UCI to clear the bases and grab a 2-0 advantage. Utah Valley quickly responded as Michael Beltran led off the third inning with a triple and scored on a wild pitch two batters later.
UVU continued to put runners on base and tied the score at two apiece just one inning later. Ryan Eastburn opened the fourth with a single to right field and Pacen Hayes earned a walk. Despite an ensuing double play, Kade Poulson singled up the middle to score Eastburn and level the score.
In the bottom of the sixth, UC Irvine put the pressure on Cofer. The Anteaters led off the inning with a single then a walk, and a sacrifice moved the runners to second and third. A fielder's choice by Utah Valley resulted in a run and broke the tie, and another single made it 4-2 for the Anteaters. Poulsen fielded a ground ball from the next hitter and threw the runner out at home, and Cofer forced a ground out on the next play to avoid any further damage.
Needing a rally to get back in the game, the UVU bats delivered in the top of the eighth inning.
Trevor Peterson led off the inning with a single and Eastburn drew a walk. Hayes then singled down the left-field line to score Peterson and pull the Wolverines within one. After a pitching change by UCI, Drew Sims connected on an RBI single to score Eastburn. Poulson and Beltran then drew two-straight walks to score Hayes and give Utah Valley the 5-4 advantage.
The Wolverines kept the pressure on and added three insurance runs on a Hayes three-run blast.
David Modler drew a walk to open the final inning and stole second base. Irvine then intentionally walked Eastburn and Hayes hit a homerun for the second-straight game to lift UVU to an 8-4 lead. UC Irvine threatened to tie or take the lead as it loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth, but Drew Hill surrendered only one run as he forced a pop up to end the game.
Hayes' big game fueled Utah Valley as he went 2-for-4 with a home run, a single and a walk. His performance at the plate resulted in four RBI's and two runs scored. Eastburn also had a productive day from the plate in the DH spot as he went 2-for-3 including three walks and three runs scored. Sims, Poulsen and Beltran all knocked in an RBI for the Wolverines as well.
UVU will look to secure the series in the third and final game tomorrow (March 18) with the first pitch scheduled for 2:00 p.m MST. The Wolverines will then return to Orem for the first home game of the season against Northern Colorado on March 23.
