OREM, Utah – Utah Valley baseball returns to the diamond this week for two games with the University of Utah. The first game will take place on Monday, Apr. 1, at 6:00 p.m. MT at Smith's Ballpark in Salt Lake City before shifting south to UCCU Ballpark for a Tuesday Apr. 2 contest in Orem at 6:05 p.m. MT.
BROADCAST INFO
Monday's contest with Utah will be streamed on Utah Live Stream, available on utahutes.com and via audio only on GoUVU.com. On Tuesday, the broadcast will move to ESPN+ with audio-only at GoUVU.com. Jordan Bianucci and Brice Larson will call the action on ESPN+ and GoUVU.com. Live stats for both games will be available on UVUstats.com.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines finished 1-2 last weekend at Abilene Christian and finished .500 on the week with a victory over in-state rival BYU on Monday night in Provo. UVU used a nine-run seventh inning to beat the Cougars in Provo for the first time since 2016.
In Abilene, they won the series opener 7-3 behind seven innings from
Braden Boisvert before
Jayden Smith hit UVU's second grand slam of the week to lift them to the victory. ACU battled back and won the series' final two games.
Cole Jordan finished the series going 3-for-9, including a game-tying two-run homer in the ninth inning on Saturday.
SCOUTING UTAH
The Utes are 18-8 this year and 7-5 in Pac-12 play. They have been receiving votes in the top 25 polls. Senior outfielder Kai Roberts leads them in multiple offensive categories, including average (.365), homers (5), and RBIs (28). Core Jackson, Carson Bodily, and Drake Digiorno all hit over .300 for the Utah offense. On the mound, they enter this week's matchup with a 4.42 ERA as a team and have tough arms in the bullpen, with Randon Hostert, Ernesto Lugo-Canchola, and Micah Ashman all holding ERAs below three.
STREAK AGAINST UTAH
The Wolverines have won the last four with the Utes, including winning the season series last season with two wins at UCCU Ballpark. The longest streak for UVU over their in-state Pac-12 foe is four, accomplished in 2016 through 2017. Utah Valley has won its last three against power five opponents from the state of Utah.
ON DECK
Utah Valley will continue its homestand this weekend with a WAC series against Utah Tech in the Old Hammer Rivalry. The first game is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. MT on Friday, Apr. 5. The series continues with games on Apr. 6 at 2:05 p.m. MT and Apr. 7 at 12:05 p.m. MT.
