OREM, Utah – Fresh off a home game against neighboring rival BYU, the Utah Valley University baseball team will return to the road for a four-game series at former WAC foe CSU Bakersfield this weekend in Southern California. 
 
The non-conference series will run Friday to Sunday, March 25-27, at CSUB's Hardt Field in Bakersfield. Friday's opener is set for a 7 p.m. MT/6 p.m. PT start, while the two teams will play a Saturday doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. MT/2 p.m. PT. The series will then conclude on Sunday with a 1 p.m. MT/noon PT start. All four games will be streamed live on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available by visiting GoRunners.com. 
 
The Wolverines will enter the series with a 6-14 overall record and a 2-7 start to WAC play. After getting swept at first-place Grand Canyon last weekend, UVU then dropped a 12-5 UCCU Crosstown Clash to BYU at UCCU Ballpark in Orem on Tuesday night. Prior to the losing streak, Utah Valley had won four of six with wins over Dixie State, California Baptist, and a pair of midweek victories at UNLV. 
 
In Tuesday's home game against Brigham Young, the Cougars jumped out to a 6-0 lead before UVU responded with a run in the fifth and another in the sixth to make it 6-2. Kayler Yates and Copper Hansen recorded back-to-back extra-base hits for Utah Valley for its first run of the game in the fifth, and the Wolverines followed with an RBI groundout from Garrett Broussard in the sixth. UVU got home runs from Connor Hall and Spencer Olsen late in the game, but it wasn't enough as the Cougars held on to claim Tuesday's Crosstown Clash by a score of 12-5. 
 
Hansen led UVU at the plate in Tuesday's game by going 2-for-4 with a triple, an RBI and a run scored, while Hall belted out a two-run homer in the seventh and Olsen banged out a solo shot in his first collegiate at-bat in a pinch-hit appearance in the ninth. The Wolverines also had a couple of scoreless outings on the mound late in the game from Luke McCollough and Yates, as well as a strong 3.1 innings of work from Carson Brown early in the game in which he allowed just two runs while striking out a game-high five batters. 
 
Senior Mitch Moralez leads UVU on the season with a .364 batting average, a .468 slugging clip, and a .402 on-base percentage. He also fronts the team in doubles with five, extra-base hits with six, and is second in runs scored with nine. Trey Cutchen is next with a .276 average and a team-leading 10 runs scored, while Cole Jordan follows with a .261 clip. Hansen is next with a .250 batting average and is also tied for the team lead in RBIs with nine, while Hall fronts the team in round trippers with two. On the mound, Coop Rust fronts UVU's starting rotation with a 1-2 record, 2.75 ERA, and a team-high 19.2 innings pitched. Nick Sims leads the way from the pen, as he'll enter the weekend with a 2-0 record, two saves, and a solid 1.38 ERA.
 
THIS WEEKEND'S SCHEDULED STARTING PITCHERS
After recently coming back from an injury and making his first start and appearance of the season on Tuesday against BYU, southpaw Cameron Scudder (0-1, 0.00 ERA) is scheduled to get the ball for UVU in the series opener on Friday and will face CSUB righty Benji Caggianelli (1-1, 1.42 ERA). On Saturday, UVU will start a pair of right-handers in Carson Brown (0-0, 5.54 ERA) and Coop Rust (1-2, 2.75 ERA) and they will face CSUB RHP Jaykob Acosta in game one (2-1, 3.32 ERA) and LHP Kellen O'Connor (1-2, 4.35 ERA) in game two. Sunday's finale will then pit UVU righty Mason Gray (0-2, 5.68 ERA) against Bakersfield RHP Adrian Santa Cruz (1-0, 3.00 ERA). 
 
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
The Roadrunners will enter this weekend with an 8-11 overall record and a 3-0 start to Big West play. CSU Bakersfield last swept UC Riverside on the road in its conference-opening series last weekend before dropping a wild Tuesday night game to Pepperdine at home, 10-9. CSUB also holds wins on the year over Kansas State (two), Utah, Pacific, and Oakland. The 'Runners were picked to finish eighth in the Big West this season after going 20-23 overall and placing seventh in Big West play with a 17-19 league record a season ago.   
 
AJ Miller leads CSUB on the season with a .348 batting average, four homers, 14 runs scored, and is second in both doubles (with four) and RBIs (with 12). Cory Blackburn is next with a .333 average, followed by Bailey Seeger at .326 and Angel Saldivar at .323. Friday's scheduled starter Caggianelli leads Bakersfield's starting rotation with a 1-1 record, 1.42 ERA, and 35 strikeouts in 25.1 innings of work. Kevin Altamirano is CSUB's top reliever with a 0-0 record and 0.93 ERA in 9.2 innings, while Matt Comnos holds a 1-0 clip, 1.46 ERA, a save, and 18 Ks in 12.1 innings. 
 
ALL-TIME SERIES HISTORY
Friday's opener will mark the 21st all-time meeting between the Wolverines and 'Runners and the series is all tied up at 10-10. CSU Bakersfield has won two straight and last took two of three from UVU in 2019 in the final WAC series between the two conference foes. The two were former WAC counterparts from 2014-2019. CSUB will enter the weekend holding a 6-3 advantage with games played in Bakersfield and 8-2 in the last 10 games. 
 
ON DECK FOR UVU
The Wolverines will next return to the state of Utah for the first of three season meetings against in-state foe Utah on Tuesday, March 29. The contest will be held at Smith's Ballpark in SLC at 6 p.m. UVU will then return to WAC play when Sacramento State comes to town for a three-game series next weekend, April 1-3.