DJ Massey finished 3 for 3 with a home run and a career-high five RBIs while reaching base four times, and Derek Houston went 3 for 4 with his second career home run to lead UVU (11-14) in the run-rule victory over CSUSB (15-13).

The Wolverines started the game with walks to Hunter Katschke and Kaden Carpenter on a combined eight pitches to immediately put a runner in scoring position. UVU then loaded the bases on a bunt single from Mason Strong. A balk put the Wolverines up 1-0 before they extended the lead on a dropped fly ball by the CSUSB left fielder that allowed a second run to score.

The lead grew in the third inning after Carpenter got the green light on a 3-0 pitch and turned on a fastball off the wall in right field. He moved to third with nobody out following the second Coyote balk of the game and scored on a sacrifice fly from Mason Hamlin.

The Coyotes threatened for the first time against left-hander Jacob Heppner, but Friday’s hero, Greg Luna, hit a grounder that was gloved by Heppner, who started an inning-ending 1-6-3 double play.

The defense carried momentum into the offense as UVU broke through with a four-run fourth inning that started with singles from Jayden Smith and Houston, who later moved into scoring position on a double steal.

Massey drove in two runs with a single to center field to make it 5-0, the first of his career-high five RBIs. The Wolverines added two more after Katschke doubled off the top of the extended wall in left and Carpenter drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 7-0.

UVU continued to add to its lead in the fifth with a two-out rally that started with singles by Smith and Houston before Massey hit his first home run of the season to left-center field, making it 10-0.

Heppner (1-0) went six innings, one shy of his career high of seven, which he matched for the second time last week at Stanford. He allowed one run with one strikeout, inducing mostly soft contact.

The Wolverines pushed the game into run-rule territory with a five-run sixth inning, sending all nine hitters to the plate. RBI singles from Block, who lined a shot to first base, and Chipper Beck, who singled to left field, made it 12-1. Houston capped the scoring at 15-1 with a home run to right-center field, the second homer of the day from the bottom of the order.

Jordan Chancellor made his second career appearance in the seventh, recording a pair of flyouts and a groundout to end the game.

Cal Baptist tops Wolverine softball

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Utah Valley dropped its series finale to the California Baptist Lancers, falling 6-3 on Saturday afternoon at John C. Funk Stadium.

With the loss, the Wolverines fall to 19-14 and 2-4 in WAC play, while the Lancers improve to 27-12 and 5-1 in the league.

CBU struck first via a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first, but the Wolverines were able to level the score on a bloop single by  Megan Sterzer in the second.

The Lancers got all the scoring they needed in the third, rallying for five runs aided in part by a pair of fielder’s choices where no outs were made and a couple of errors.

Utah Valley whittled the lead down to three at 6-3, as Tatum Hall scored on a wild pitch in the fourth and Angelique Mann got a bases-loaded sac fly in the fifth, but that was the closest the Wolverines would get.

The Wolverines will look to get right on Tuesday with the final game of the season series against the Weber State Wildcats in Ogden. Weather permitting, first pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. MT, and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+. UVU will then host red-hot UT Arlington at the weekend for a three-game series.

Track shines at UVU Invitational

Maddie Passmore matched the school record in the triple jump to lead Utah Valley at the UVU Collegiate Invitational on a blustery day at Hal Wing Track & Field.

With her third leap, Passmore equaled teammate Olivia Pixton’s school record of 12.26m, set in 2024, and now owns at least a share of both the indoor and outdoor triple jump records. Passmore also moved into second place all-time in the long jump, posting a mark of 5.98m with her third vault in that event.

UVU’s men’s throwers started the day off strong with a pair of top 10’s in the hammer throw. Eddie Garcia improved his standing at No. 4 all-time with a new PR of 57.12m, while Andrew Turner moved up to fifth with a top mark of 55.75m. Later in the day on the women’s side,  Cale Stinebaugh entered the top 10 in the shot put with a new best of 13.27m, good for ninth all-time.

The Wolverine sprinters benefited from the breezy conditions with the wind at their backs as Kade Thompson, Gavin Stafford and Garrett Nelson all posted new PRs in the 100-meter dash. Thompson moved up to third with a time of 10.20, with Stafford following closely behind at 10.24 to debut in the top 10 at fourth. Nelson entered the top 10 at No. 9 with a time of 10.49. On the women’s side, Eme Stout entered the top 10 at No. 5 with a new PR of 11.74.

Thompson, Stafford, Nelson and Collin Petersen posted a strong showing in the 4×100, posting the seventh-best time in that event at 39.90.  James Duncan improved on last week’s outdoor season debut in the 110mH, moving up from 10th to third with a time of 14.19.

Sila Kiplagat  and Jayden Fitzgarrald impressed in the 800-meter, as Kiplagat won the event with a converted time of 1:49.79, good for fourth all-time, while Fitzgarrald followed closely behind in third at 1:50.59 to move into fifth all-time.

Grace Degarimore won the women’s shot put with a mark of 14.64m, falling just short of the new PR she set just last week at Utah Tech, and later won the discus at 47.52m. Stinebaugh took third with a top throw of 43.72m, falling .06m short of her PR set last week. Trevor Hill  won the men’s shot put with a season-best 16.81m.Utah Valley closed the day with a win in the men’s 4×400 relay, as  Max Clemons, Duncan, Petersen and Caidan Cooper posted a time of 3:18.32.

Utah Valley will have a busy first weekend of April, sending athletes to three meets on the 3-4. The Wolverines will compete at the UNLV Rebel ELITE in Las Vegas, along with the Stanford Invitational and Mike Fanelli Track Classic in Northern California.