MALIBU, Calif. — BYU scored two-runs in the eighth inning to break a 1-1 tie and go on to defeat Pepperdine 4-2 in Game 3 of the WCC series at Eddy D. Field Stadium on Saturday.

The victory gave the Cougars five wins in a row and a three-game sweep of the Waves.

“We did a lot of little things today that won’t necessarily show up in the stats sheet but helped us find a way to win,” said interim head coach Trent Pratt. “Up and down the lineup it was a great team win. Ryan (Brady) gave us his best start of the year on the mound, and eventually we found ways to push across a couple of runs.”

After three scoreless innings, BYU (27-18, 11-10) picked up the first run of the game in the top of the fourth for a 1-0 lead. Brock Watkins led off the inning with a walk and advanced to third on a Mitch McIntyre double down the right field line. Ryan Sepede then scored Watkins on a sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead.

Pepperdine (20-22, 8-13) tied the score in the top of the seventh on a lead-off home run by Connor Bradshaw to knot the game at 1-1.

The Cougars answered in the top of the eighth with two runs on two hits to retake the lead 3-1. Watkins opened the inning with a single up the middle and eventually moved to third when McIntyre was hit by a pitch and Sepede walked to load the bases. With one out, Austin Deming then singled down the left field line to drive in Watkins and McIntyre.

The Waves cut the lead to 3-2 with a run of their own in the bottom half of the eighth on four hits, but BYU right fielder Sepede threw out the potential tying run at the plate to preserve the Cougars’ one-run lead. Lefty Cooper McKeehan came off the bench to get the final out of the inning and send the game to the ninth.

BYU picked up an insurance run in the bottom of the ninth for a 4-2 advantage. Watkins singled to score Reuter, who was hit by a pitch, stole second and advanced to third on a Ozzie Pratt groundball.

After Pepperdine opened the bottom of the ninth with a lead-off single, the Cougars turned a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat. Reid McLaughlin then got the final out of the game on a flyball to center field to seal the victory, the series sweep and pick up his ninth save of the year. Nate Dahle picked up his first win of the season, while BYU right-handed starter Ryan Brady held the Waves scoreless for 5.1 innings, his longest outing of the season.

The Cougars return home for the final eight games of the regular season beginning with Dixie State at Miller Park on Tuesday, May 10 at 5 p.m. MDT.

BYU softball powers past Pacific

STOCKTON, Calif. — BYU softball swept Pacific University with a 11-0 mercy rule victory on Saturday afternoon at Bill Simoni Field. The Cougars out scored the Tigers 24-0 through three games with their 3-0, 10-0 and 11-0 wins.

BYU improved to 38-10 on the season and 10-2 in West Coast Conference play.

Through two innings, each team had two hits a piece and the game was scoreless. In the top of the third inning, Violet Zavodnik connected on a three-run home run to give the Cougars the lead. Martha Epenesa singled to center field and Taylei Williams singled through the left side for Zavodnik to go yard next just near the right field line.

In the top of the fourth inning, the Cougars added six runs before getting a single out.

The Cougars didn’t let their foot off the gas as they added two more runs in the top of the fifth. HannahJo Peterson got hit by a pitch and Alexis Gilio entered as her pinch runner. Next, Williams hit BYU’s third home run of the day, taking the score to 11-0. BYU had eight home runs over the three game series against Pacific.

BYU’s Autumn Moffat-Korth struck out the first two batters in the bottom of the fifth, and with a ground out from second base to shortstop, the game ended at 11-0 due to the NCAA eight-run mercy rule.

Next week, the Cougars will host four games at home, starting with a matchup against Utah State University on Tuesday, May 10th. The first pitch will be at 6 p.m. MDT and the game will be streaming on the BYUtv app or byutv.org

Washington State shuts out UVU baseball

PULLMAN, Wash. – Washington State University defeated Utah Valley University, 11-0, on Sunday afternoon at Bailey-Brayton Field in Pullman, Washington.

WSU (22-23) used a dominant pitching performance to sweep the non-conference weekend series and hold the UVU (16-31) bats in check. Mitch Moralez led the way for the Wolverines offensively, going 2-for-4, and Copper Hansen went 1-for-4.

Moralez got his first of two hits on the day with an infield single to third to open up the ballgame for the Wolverines. Washington State starting pitcher McKabe Cottrell got the last two outs via strikeout to end the inning for the Wolverines.

Connor Hall worked from behind in the count to draw a 3-2 walk in the top of the third with the Wolverines looking to rally from a 2-0 deficit. Cottrell came up with a groundout and an inning-ending strikeout.

WSU took a 3-0 lead by adding one run in the third. Spencer Olsen drew a one-out free pass but was stranded on the bases.

The Pac-12 Cougars added a run in the fifth and two in the sixth to take a 6-0 lead. Moralez reached in the sixth with a single to center before Trey Cutchen hit into a double play to end the inning.

Copper Hansen reached in the eighth on a single through the right side with one out. Dakota Hawkins got back-to-back strikeouts to end the threat in the eight. WSU added four runs in the last of the eighth to pull away for the 11-0 victory.

Cottrell (2-6) picks up the win for Washington State, going 7.0 shutout innings with two hits on nine strikeouts. Mason Gray (2-4) got the loss going 5.2 innings on the hill for Utah Valley.

Utah Valley will continue a current nine-game trip on Monday against Lower Columbia College out of the NWAC with a 6:00 p.m. MT/ 5:00 p.m. PT first pitch from Story Field in Longview, Washington. The contest will mark a homecoming of sorts for head coach Eddie Smith, who previously spent four seasons as the head man at LCC. Following the game, the Wolverines will continue south for a midweek game on Wednesday, May 11 at 3:00 p.m. MT/ 2:00 p.m. PT at Portland out of the West Coast Conference.

UVU softball earns doubleheader split with New Mexico State

OREM, Utah — Utah Valley wrapped up the WAC regular season with a series win after earning a doubleheader split against New Mexico State, 8-5 and 8-9, on Senior Day from Wolverine Softball Field.

Senior Madison Carr added to her school-record hit total with a pair of three-hit games while also stealing four bases, three of which came in game one. Carr was 10-for-14 (.714) in the series with five runs scored and five stolen bases. She finished the WAC regular season with a .506 batting average in conference play. Both Mikaela Thomson and Rylee Thorpe hit three-run home runs over the course of the twin bill, with Thomson’s giving her a team-high 12 along with 49 RBIs on the year.

Following the doubleheader, Utah Valley honored its eight graduating seniors. In addition to Carr and Thomson, Jordan Freas, Kyla Hardy, Rien Milliken, Karleigh Olsen, Peyton Prigge, and Linnah Rebollodo were also recognized.

The Wolverines will be the No. 5 seed in next week’s WAC Tournament and play a single-elimination game against No. 8 seed Lamar in the first game on Wednesday. The winner would move into the double elimination portion of the tournament, which begins later that day against the No. 4 seed.

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