HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Utah Valley fell on the wrong side of a pitchers' duel in the first game of a weekend series at Sam Houston. UVU (20-17, 6-8) outhit Sam Houston (23-17, 15-4) 7-6 on the evening. Burke Camper finished 2-for-4 from the plate.
 
"Our pitchers did a nice job against a strong Sam Houston lineup. Unfortunately, their pitching staff did even better and suffocated our offense allowing just one free 90 the entire game," said UVU head coach Eddie Smith.
 
Camper got the Wolverines their first hit in the evening in the second with a single through the left side. He would be stranded after a line out. The Bearkats took a 1-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning with a solo home run by Easton Loyd that just snuck out of the park.
 
Utah Valley looked to tie the game with a two-out rally in the third. Daniel Dickinson doubled to extend his reach-base streak to 25 games. He advanced to third on a bouncer hit by Luke Iverson. The toss got past the player covering the first base bag, and Dickinson hustled home from third to even the score at 1-1.
 
Logan Gerling came up big from UVU in the third after the Bearkats loaded the bases with no one out and looked to retake the lead. Gerling struck out Walker Janek before Jake Tatom grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning. He finished the game tossing 5.1 innings, allowing three hits, two runs, and striking out three.
 
Utah Valley looked to build off the momentum earned in the bottom of the third. UVU put the first two runners on after singles from Cole Jordan and Camper. It was Coltin Atkinson's turn to work out of a jam, as he retired the next three hitters to keep the game tied at 1-1.
 
Dickinson led off with his second hit of the ballgame, a single to right field. A pair of fielder's choices ended the threat for the Wolverines. In the bottom of the sixth, Sam Houston regained the lead and chased UVU starter Gerling. Loyd had his second RBI on a groundout to put Sam Houston up 2-1.
 
The Wolverines had a chance to tie it in the seventh after a one-out double from Brandon Luna put the tying run in scoring position. Chandler David came in relief to end the threat getting the last two outs.
 
Ethan Fowlks went the rest of the way for UVU and finished with 2.2 innings, three hits, and one run.
 
David kept the UVU bats quiet, only allowing a base hit in the ninth inning on a Trey Cutchen infield single. The Bearkats added a late run to go up 3-1.
 
The two teams will play Saturday, Apr. 22 at 2:05 p.m. MT. The game will air on ESPN3. The series finale is scheduled for Sunday, Apr. 23, at 11:05 a.m. MT.