OREM, Utah – Utah Valley baseball returns to the diamond this weekend for a five-game series at UCCU Ballpark against Northern Colorado. The series begins Friday, March 6, at 4:05 p.m. MT, with a doubleheader on Saturday before single games on Sunday and Monday.
 
BROADCAST INFO
This weekend's series will air on ESPN+, with Jordan Bianucci (play-by-play) and Brice Larson (analyst) calling the games on Friday, Sunday, and Monday. Zach Barrows will join Bianucci on the air for Saturday's doubleheader.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines took three of four from UC Riverside last weekend to begin the 2026 home schedule. Utah transfer Kaden Carpenter finished the series 8-for-17 (.471) with six runs scored, two home runs, and 11 RBIs. Mason Strong hit .500 on the weekend, going 6-for-12.
 
As a team, Utah Valley hit .323 during the series and outscored the Highlanders 40-17 over the weekend.
 
Utah Valley also had a solid weekend on the mound, starting with spot starts from Garrett Miller and Ray Hernandez, who each earned a win. Miller finished with a career-high six innings, allowing four hits and striking out four. Hernandez got the start on Sunday and tossed four innings, allowing three hits while striking out five.
 
SCOUTING THE BEARS
Northern Colorado enters the series with a 1-13 record this season. The Bears picked up their first win of the season at UNLV on Wednesday and will look to carry that momentum into Orem.
 
Offensively, they are led by Zeke Minic, who is hitting .370 this season, while Jaden Stone is batting .333.
 
UNC has struggled on the mound this season, with Jake Storey likely occupying the Friday night spot. He is 0-2 with a 6.28 ERA and 13 strikeouts in three starts this season. As a team, the Bears have an 11.34 ERA.
 
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST UNC
Northern Colorado and Utah Valley have one of the longest-running series in program history, with the two teams meeting 67 times during UVU's Division I era.
 
The Wolverines swept the Bears last season in Greeley in a five-game series and have won the last seven meetings overall. This will be UNC's first visit to Orem since the 2018 season, when current UVU head coach Nate Rasmussen was in the opposing dugout as the Bears' recruiting coordinator.
 
CARPENTER NAMED WAC HITTER OF THE WEEK
The American Fork native had an outstanding weekend at the plate for the Wolverines, finishing 8-for-17 with two home runs and 11 RBIs. Both home runs came in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader, when he drove pitches to the opposite field.
 
His ability to get on base was key, as he posted a .550 on-base percentage with five extra-base hits during the weekend.
 
He recorded three multi-RBI games, including three RBIs on Friday, and added three more in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader before setting a season-high four RBIs, one shy of the career high he set at Utah in 2024.
 
BARTO TAKES THE WORLD STAGE
Utah Valley baseball alum Jeff Barto has been named to the Czechia roster for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, which begins March 5, 2026. It will mark his second appearance in the WBC after competing in the previous tournament.
 
During the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Barto tossed 5 1/3 innings in relief against Korea, allowing just one run on a solo home run by Atlanta Braves infielder Ha-Seong Kim. Czechia finished 1-3 in Pool B and did not advance to the knockout round.
 
Barto pitched for the Wolverines during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, making 38 career appearances and logging 71 1/3 innings. In 2013, he went 2-2 with a 2.85 ERA in 21 appearances and recorded three saves. He currently ranks third all-time among pitchers in single-season ERA.
 
BECK NAMED TO BROOKS WALLACE AWARD WATCHLIST
Beck, in his first season in Orem after transferring from Brigham Young University in Provo, has made an immediate impact in the Wolverines' lineup. He leads the team with a .423 batting average, including four extra-base hits: two doubles, one triple and one home run.
 
UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky, the 2025 award winner, headlines the Top 100 named to the watch list on Wednesday. Beck was the only WAC shortstop selected. The Wolverines will also face two other nominees during the 2026 season in Stanford's Charlie Bates and Cal State Bakersfield's Elijah Pelayo.
 
The Brooks Wallace Award is presented annually and also features a weekly honor recognizing the nation's top shortstop. The award is named after former Texas Tech player Brooks Wallace, who played for the Red Raiders from 1977-80 before passing away at age 27 from leukemia.
 
UP NEXT
The Wolverines will have a nontraditional week ahead with a lone midweek game against Colorado Mesa on Wednesday, March 11, at 1:05 p.m. MT. UVU will close out its 12-game opening-season homestand with a two-game series against Cincinnati beginning Monday, March 16.