OREM, Utah – Utah Valley baseball won the opening game of their weekend series against Abilene Christian, 9-7, on Friday night at UCCU Ballpark. UVU (17-9, 3-1) scored four runs in the fifth and five in the seventh for the win. Luke Iverson went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, and CJ Colyer started the scoring with a three-run shot against ACU (16-11, 1-3) starter Dominick Reid.
 
The Wildcats got on the board with hits by three of the game's first four hitters to go up 2-0. UVU starter Corbin Kirk settled down and kept ACU scoreless for the rest of his career-high six innings despite allowing base runners in each inning. His eight strikeouts tied a career-high, with the lefty recording two strikeouts in the first, third, and sixth innings.
 
The Wolverines looked to get on the board in the game, but a couple of strokes of bad luck turned hard-hit balls into double plays. Mason Strong finished 3-for-4, including a sharp double to left field that just missed being a home run. He was doubled off at second when Brody Block lined into a double play.
 
DJ Massey was robbed of a base hit in the third inning when he drilled a bouncer off the pitcher, but it ricocheted right to Ben Greer at second base for ACU. UVU was back at it in the fourth inning, and Jayden Smith worked a walk against Dominick Reid. The Oklahoma State transfer has been the ace of the Wildcat staff this season, but the inning ended when Dominic Longo II hit a hard ball right at Greer, who turned two.
 
Trailing 2-0 in the home half of the fifth inning, Landon Frei walked to successfully reach base for the 25^th straight contest before Block singled to put runners on first and second. Colyer hit a high fly ball that looked like it might fall short of the warning track, but it carried over the centerfield fence to give UVU a 3-2 lead. The Wolverines kept the inning alive with a double to right center from DJ Massey for one of his two hits in the game before Iverson's single to right scored him to make it 4-2.
 
ACU looked to tie the game with the tying run in the sixth, with runners on at second and third when Kirk struck out Braden Regala, looking to end the sixth inning. They would tie the game in the seventh on a double from Sam Hardcastle before taking a 6-4 lead after a triple by Greer and a sac fly from Maddox Miese.
 
The Wolverines answered right back in the home half of the seventh, starting with a leadoff single from Block before De Anda launched a home run deep to left field to tie the game up at 6-6. Following a pitching change, Massey doubled for the second time in the game to put the leading run in scoring position for Iverson, who hit his ninth homer of the season to put UVU in front 8-6. He has homered in three straight games and reached base safely in 25 consecutive games. Strong later made it 9-6 with a single to score Smith, who had added a double in the inning.
 
Alan Huerta (3-0) earned the win for the Wolverines, and Cooper Littledike earned his fourth save after going the final two innings, allowing two hits and striking out one hitter.
 
The Wolverines and Wildcats will play the second game of the series on Saturday, Mar. 29 at 3:05 p.m. MT before the series wraps up on Sunday, Mar. 30 at 12:05 p.m. MT.