OREM, Utah — Utah Valley University softball heads back to the St. George area this week for a three-game series against in-state rival Southern Utah. The series begins Friday at 3 p.m. MT with a single game and concludes on Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at noon MT. The games are being played at Archie H. Gubler Park in Santa Clara, Utah.
The Wolverines (3-2) are coming off a successful opening weekend at the Dixie State Classic in St. George, with wins over Montana, Utah State, and Nevada. The two losses came against BYU and then-No. 2 Washington.
In the season opener against the Grizzlies, the Wolverines rallied with two runs in the top of the 7th inning to win 4-3. Siena Sandoval delivered the game-winning RBI in the seventh inning to help UVU win its season opener for the second straight season under head coach Stacy May-Johnson. Utah Valley that up with an 8-0, 6-inning win over in-state foe Utah State behind a two-hit shutout from Devyn Cretz and three hits from Linnah Rebolledo.
The next day, the Wolverines dropped a 7-2 decision to BYU before bouncing back with an 8-6 win over Nevada, who was 6-2 entering a game and coming off of an upset win over Washington. UVU built an 8-2 lead and then held on with Cretz picking up her second save of the weekend.
Rebolledo led UVU at the plate on the weekend, batting .538 with a triple and three RBIs. Cretz was 1-0 with two saves with Brooke Carter and Katie Zuniga picking up wins in the other two UVU victories.
ON DECK
Utah Valley heads to Las Vegas next week (March 5-7) for the Boyd Gaming Classic at UNLV. The Wolverines are scheduled for five games: two against Idaho State, two against the host Rebels and one against WAC foe Seattle University.
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
Southern Utah enters the weekend at 2-10 with four of its losses coming at the hands No. 2 Washington and No. 4 Arizona. The T-Birds recorded wins over Dixie State and New Mexico, with the victory over the Lobos coming last Sunday in a 4-1 decision in the Hillenbrand Invitational in Tucson, Arizona. Josie White has been impressive at the plate so far this season, batting .432 with six home runs and 15 runs batted in.
Utah Valley has a slight 15-12-1 edge in the all-time series and has won the last four meetings between the teams. UVU and SUU did not meet during the shortened 2020 season.
