OREM, Utah – Utah Valley University baseball will cap a four-game homestand by hosting in-state foe Utah for a midweek contest on Tuesday night at UCCU Ballpark.
 
First pitch for the in-state non-conference contest is set for 6 p.m. MT. The game will mark the second and final season meeting between the Wolverines and Utes. Utah took the previous meeting, 11-5, on Tuesday, April 16 at Smith's Ballpark in Salt Lake City.
 
"In-state games are important and we're looking forward to Tuesday's game," head UVU coach Eric Madsen said. "We should have a good crowd and we'll be ready to get out there and compete and find a way to come out on top."
 
UVU will enter the contest with a 9-30 overall record and a 6-9 clip in WAC play to currently sit in sixth place in the league standings. After dropping the opener of the three-game series to the defending WAC Tournament champion New Mexico State Aggies last Thursday, UVU responded to take game two in walk-off fashion by a score of 10-9. The Wolverines then looked to stage a late comeback to take the series on Saturday in game three, but the comeback fell just short in a 12-11 setback to drop two of three to the now second-place Aggies. 
 
In Friday's second game, freshman Mick Madsen helped the Wolverines earn the walk-off victory. Trailing 9-8 in the bottom of the eighth, Madsen snuck his first collegiate home run over the right field wall to tie the deadlock the score at 9-9. Then with the bases loaded and nobody out in the last of the ninth, Madsen then delivered a walk-off single over the third baseman's head into left to propel UVU to a 10-9 victory. 
 
The freshman Madsen led UVU in the game by going 4-for-6 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Michael Beltran too had a strong game for the Wolverines by going a perfect 3-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored. UVU also got a solid start from Paxton Schultz after allowing just two earned runs while striking out five and walking just two in 6.0 innings of work to keep the Wolverines in the ballgame. Reliever Jesse Schmit was then credited with the win after pitching a pair of scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth to earn his third win on the year. 
 
Then in Saturday's finale with UVU trailing 12-7 in the sixth inning, the Wolverines looked to stage a late comeback by scoring two in the sixth, one in the eighth and another in the ninth to make it a 12-11 ballgame. But NM State reliever Keaton Graf then came on and managed to retire the next two hitters he faced, however, to earn the save by helping preserve the win for the Aggies.
 
UVU pounded out a total of 16 hits in the series finale and four Wolverines finished with multi-hit outings. Beltran led the way by reaching base five times by going 3-for-5 with two walks and two runs scored, while Kade Poulsen and Ryan Eastburn each too posted 3-for-5 performances which included a ninth-inning home run from Eastburn. 
 
Eastburn paces UVU on the season with a .356 average as well as a .481 on-base clip, while Beltran is right behind him with a .346 clip and team-best tallies of 26 walks, three triples and 34 runs scored. Alexander Marco holds a .327 battling average and team-high marks of 11 doubles, six homers and 32 RBIs. 
 
Freshman right-hander Mason Gray is scheduled to start Tuesday's contest on the mound for the Wolverines and will face Utah righty Dustyn Schramm. 
 
ABOUT THE UTES
Utah will enter Tuesday with a 12-21 overall record and a 4-14 clip in Pac-12 Conference play after taking one of three from No. 12 Arizona State at home over the weekend. The Utes have also won four of their last six games after taking two of three at home from Utah the previous weekend, topping UVU, and then taking the finale over the ranked Sun Devils on Saturday. The Utes were picked to finish ninth in the Pac-12 this year after going 16-39 a season ago and 8-22 in conference play.
 
Oliver Dunn leads Utah on the season with a .377 batting average, 21 extra-base hits and 36 runs scored. Erick Migueles is next with a .333 clip and team-leading tallies of six home runs and 34 RBIs. 
 
SERIES HISTORY VS. UTAH
After topping the Wolverines by a score of 11-5 last Tuesday in SLC, Utah now leads the all-time series 31-23 over UVU. The Utes have also won each of the last four meetings and hold a slim 14-13 series advantage in Orem after beating UVU at UCCU Ballpark, 12-6 last season and, 23-5, in 2017. 
 
ON DECK FOR UVU
The Wolverines will next hit the road to return to conference play for a key three-game series at CSU Bakersfield this weekend (April 26-28). UVU and CSUB will play a trio of games at Bakersfield's Hardt Field beginning Friday, April 26 at 7 p.m. MT/6 p.m. PT. The series will mark the first of two straight WAC series in the Golden State, as UVU will also face California Baptist in Riverside the following weekend (May 3-5).