UTAH VALLEY at SOUTH CAROLINA
Friday, Feb. 22 - Sunday Feb. 24
2pm MT/4pm ET | 12pm MT/2pm ET | 11:30am MT/1:30pm ET
Founders Park | Columbia, S.C.
OREM, Utah – Fresh off of an opening series on the West Coast, the Utah Valley University baseball team will now make the long trek across the country to the East Coast for a three-game series at South Carolina of the SEC this weekend.
The series is scheduled for a single game each day from Friday to Sunday, Feb. 22-24, at USC's Founders Park.
Friday's opener is slated for a 2 p.m. MT/4 p.m. ET start, while Saturday's contest will begin at noon MT/2 p.m. ET and Sunday's finale is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. MT/1:30 p.m. ET. All three games will be streamed live on SEC Network Plus (ESPN 3) and live stats as well as live audio will be available by visiting GamecocksOnline.com.
The Wolverines will enter the series with a 1-2 record on the young 2019 season after taking one of three at Fresno State in a series that concluded on Presidents' Day. With rain playing havoc in the Fresno area during the opening series, UVU and Fresno State lost a game of the scheduled four-game set. After having Opening Day rained out on Feb. 15, the Bulldogs then managed to pull out a 6-3 contest in wet conditions on Feb. 16. Following another rainout on Feb. 17, the two teams then concluded the series by splitting a doubleheader on Monday, Feb. 18.
Behind a two-out go-ahead ninth-inning home run off the bat of sophomore catcher
Drew Sims, UVU took the first game of Monday's twin bill by a score of 4-3. The 'Dogs then responded with four late runs in the nightcap on their way to taking the finale, 8-3, and the series two games to one.
In Utah Valley's 4-3 victory on Monday, junior transfer
Alexander Marco blasted out the Wolverines' first home run of the season with a two-run second-inning shot to left to give UVU a 2-0 advantage. After Fresno State later drove home three runs to take a 3-2 lead, freshman
Mick Madsen delivered his first collegiate hit with an RBI single in the fifth to tie the game at 3-3. The game remained 3-3 until the ninth when Sims managed to belt out what proved to be the game-winning home run to help propel UVU to the 4-3 victory.
Newcomers
Matt Dalke and
Jesse Schmit pitched well in relief in the ballgame for UVU, as they each pitched a scoreless frame to earn the win and the save, respectively.
Michael Beltran leads Utah Valley on the young season offensively with a .333 average (3-for-9) with three walks, two runs scored and an RBI.
Kade Poulsen and Marco are next with identical .300 averages. Marco also has a homer and a team-best three runs batted in, while Poulsen has a walk and a run scored.
After starting on the mound for UVU this past weekend, right-handers
Jake Carr (Friday),
Paxton Schultz (Saturday) and
Walker Ramsey (Sunday) are all scheduled to get the ball for the Wolverines this weekend.
UTAH VALLEY ALL-TIME IN SEC COUNTRY
This weekend's series will mark just UVU's second all-time series in SEC country and Friday's opener will mark Utah Valley's fifth all-time game versus an SEC foe. The Wolverines previously faced No. 21 Mississippi State in a three-game series in Starkville last season (March 9-11, 2018). Utah Valley took one of three from the ranked Bulldogs thanks to a 2-1 11-inning win in the opener of the series. UVU's lone other contest against an SEC opponent was at the 2016 NCAA Baton Rouge Regional when the Wolverines dropped a 7-1 game at No. 8 LSU.
ABOUT THE GAMECOCKS
South Carolina will enter the series with a 3-1 record on the young season after taking two of three from Liberty at home last weekend as well as an 8-6 victory over Winthrop in Columbia on Tuesday. USC's lone loss was a 6-5 extra-inning affair to Liberty in the season opener on Feb. 15. The Gamecocks will enter Friday's series opener having won three straight after having Wednesday's midweek game against Presbyterian rained out. Carolina is coming off of a 37-26 season in 2018 in which it went 17-13 in the SEC and advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals. The Gamecocks were picked to finish fourth in the SEC Eastern Division this year.
TJ Hopkins leads South Carolina on the year with a .438 batting average, two homers, five RBIs, seven runs scored and two stolen bases. Jacob Olson is next with a .353 clip, two home runs, four RBIs and five runs scored. First team preseason All-SEC selection Noah Campbell will enter the series hitting .167 with a run batted in and three runs scored.
On the mound, Reid Morgan leads USC with a 1.50 ERA with three strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work. Right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski is slated to start Friday's opener for Carolina, while the southpaw Dylan Harley will get the ball on Saturday and Morgan will take the mound on Sunday.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. SOUTH CAROLINA
Friday's opener will mark the first all-time meeting between Utah Valley and South Carolina on the diamond.
ON DECK FOR UVU
Following the series, the Wolverines will return to Utah before returning to California for a four-game series at UC Davis March 1-3. Utah Valley will then face BYU at Miller Park in Provo for a midweek game on March 5, before hosting Saint Mary's for its opening home series of the season March 8-10.
