OREM, Utah — A four-run first inning was the difference in the ballgame as Utah Valley went toe to toe with crosstown rival and Big 12 foe BYU, falling 8-5 on Tuesday night at Wolverine Softball Field. 

Tatum Hall hit a home run for the fourth time in the last five games, aiding in the Wolverines' comeback efforts, but were unable to finish it off. 

The Cougars nickeled and dimed Utah Valley in the top of the first, recording six singles to jump out to a 4-0 lead through the first half inning. 

The Wolverines got on the board in the second with an RBI groundout by Mya Higareda, then tacked on another on an RBI double by Hall in the third to score Emma Haygood. 

BYU had an answer for every UVU rally, getting the Haygood run right back with a first-pitch solo homer to start the fourth. 

Britney Moreno cut the deficit back to two with an RBI single in the fourth, but another leadoff homer from the Cougars made it 6-3 immediately in the fifth.

Hall's two-run homer in the home half of the fifth got Utah Valley the closest it would get at 6-5. BYU matched the Wolverines once again with two runs of their own in the sixth, then held UVU scoreless over the final two frames. 

Utah Valley will now head to Riverside, Calif., for a three-game series against the CBU Lancers. First pitch of Friday's doubleheader is scheduled for 5 p.m. MT, with Saturday's series finale slated for 1 p.m. MT. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+.