BELLEVUE, Wash – Utah Valley University earned a 6-5 come-from-behind victory over Seattle University in the opening game of the three-game series on Thursday evening at Bannerwood Ballpark in Bellevue, Washington.
The Wolverines (11-19, 4-9 WAC) trailed early in the contest but rallied to come from behind to beat Seattle U (7-18, 5-8 WAC).
Spencer Olsen went 3-for-5 with a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh, and
Cole Jordan followed with a 2-for-3 outing with a grand slam in the sixth, while
Nick Sims and
Josh Brown were dominant on the mound in the late innings to help propel UVU to victory.
"It was a good win to get right off the plane and find a way to get the job done," head UVU coach
Eddie Smith said. "We put together some good at-bats and found a way to come on top with gutsy pitching performances to close out the game."
Seattle U jumped out to an early 3-0 lead with an RBI single from Shane Jamison and a two-run double from Grant Heiser. The Wolverines threatened in the second after
Paul Vossen led off and was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a base hit to right field by Olsen. UVU stranded both runners on three straight flyouts.
Mitch Moralez got a one-out single in the third inning before
Trey Cutchen doubled down the right-field line to move both runners into scoring position. Seattle U navigated the threat, however, and held UVU scoreless in the frame.
Utah Valley got the offense going in the sixth when the first three hitters reached base.
Mick Madsen reached first on a single through the middle before Vossen drew a walk, and Olsen added a base hit to load the bases. Following a pop-out, Jordan then belted out a grand slam to left to tie the game at 4-4.
Seattle U then added an unearned run in the bottom of the sixth to briefly pull back ahead at 5-4.
The Wolverines got their first lead in the seventh when Madsen drew a one-out walk, and Olsen followed with a no-doubt home run to left to put UVU up for good at 6-5. The threat continued with back-to-back walks by Coburn and Jordan before
Drew Sims popped out to end the inning.
The Redhawks put the tying and leading runs on base in the eighth, but
Josh Brown came in to get Julian Kodama to line out before retiring the side in order in the ninth to earn his third save of the season.
Nick Sims (5-0) picked up the win in relief, going 2.1 innings while allowing three hits on three strikeouts, and is now tied for first in the WAC with five wins.
Devin Smith got the start for the Wolverines and went 5.0 innings, allowing five hits. Mason Hoover (0-1) was tagged with the loss.
UVU had a total of four Wolverines record multiple-hit outings on the night, as Moralez and Cutchen both went 2-for-5 in the game. Heiser led Seattle U, going 2-for-2 with three RBIs, and Matt Boissoneault went 2-for-4 in the game.
Game two of the series has been moved up and will now begin at 12:00 p.m. MT/11:00 a.m. PT on Friday. The series will conclude on Saturday, as first pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. MT/2:00 p.m. PT. The schedule may get altered due to impending inclement weather in the Seattle area. Following the series, Utah Valley with conclude the Pacific Northwest road trip against Washington of the Pac-12 Conference on Monday, April 11 at Husky Ballpark.
