OREM, Utah – Utah Valley baseball hits the road for five games in five days, starting Friday with a three-game series at Sacramento State to open Western Athletic Conference play. The series continues Saturday and Sunday before UVU heads into the Rockies for a two-game set at Air Force starting on Monday, Apr. 13. 
 
BROADCAST INFO
The series at Sacramento State will air on ESPN+, with live stats available at GoUVU.com/stats. The two games at Air Force will be broadcast on the Mountain West Network, with Jeffrey Orman on the call from the Academy.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines won their series last weekend against future Big West foe Cal State Bakersfield with 14-4 and 5-4 victories. They dropped a midweek game, 10-5, to BYU on Tuesday night. Chipper Beck went 2 for 3 with two RBIs and two walks, reaching base four times. The senior finished the four-game stretch 7 for 15 with three doubles, three runs and four RBIs.
 
Utah Valley also saw strong pitching performances. Chance Wallace took the mound against BYU and recorded a career-best three innings, finishing the week with four innings and six combined strikeouts. George Albrecht and Ray Hernandez each had solid starts at Cal State Bakersfield, giving the Wolverines a chance to win the series.
 
SCOUTING THE HORNETS
Sacramento State is 13-21 overall and lost its series last weekend in St. George despite WAC Player of the Week Erick Dessens, who went 9 for 13 with two home runs, four runs scored, and nine RBIs. He leads the Hornets with a .353 average, nine home runs, and 44 RBIs.
 
The team's strength has been its pitching, led by Friday starter Ethan Lay, who faced the Wolverines twice last season, including a six-inning, eight-strikeout performance in Orem that helped secure a series win.
 
SCOUTING THE FALCONS
Air Force is 12-18 overall and 5-4 in the Mountain West. The Falcons were swept last weekend by San Diego State and will look to bounce back against Fresno State this weekend. They boast four hitters batting above .331, led by Kayden Bradshaw at .350. Wyatt Hanoian has a .514 on-base percentage and a .340 batting average.
 
The Wolverines and Falcons have met 20 times, but this will be their first meeting since 2020. Historically, the matchup has been high-scoring, including a 16-15 Air Force victory in Colorado Springs in 2019.
 
WELCOME TO THE PARTY
Utah Valley is the last team in the country to begin conference play after receiving the first WAC bye. The Wolverines now begin an 18-game sprint toward the conference tournament, where they will look to defend their title.
 
NO-HITTER GLORY
Last season against Sacramento State, Colton Kennedy and Cooper Littledike combined to no-hit the Hornets in Mesa, clinching UVU a spot in the WAC Tournament championship game. Kennedy pitched 7 1/3 innings with a career-high nine strikeouts before Littledike closed it out with 1 2/3 innings, adding a strikeout and one walk.
 
It marked the first combined no-hitter in WAC Tournament history and the first in UVU's Division I era. It was also the eighth no-hitter in program history, dating back to 1975.
 
UP NEXT
Utah Valley will play two games at Air Force before returning home next weekend to renew the Old Hammer Rivalry against Utah Tech. The series begins Friday, April 17, with a 6:05 p.m. MT first pitch at UCCU Ballpark.