SOFTBALL
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Runs in both the sixth and seventh innings gave Utah a 3-2 victory over Wisconsin in the first game of the day at the Big 10 Ten
MWC/ACC Challenge at JoAnne Graf Field. In the final game of the day, the Utes lost to the host Florida State, 7-3. Utah went 2-2 over the weekend.
Utah (8-13) received another solid performance on the mound by Generra Nielson, who went 12.0 innings in the two games while allowing six earned runs on 11 hits to go with 15 strikeouts and only five walks. Cheyella Meyers put together a 4-for-7 effort at the plate and also drove in a run, while Kelsi Hoopiiaina, Whitney Holm and Jackie Sweet collected three hits apiece. Hoopiiaina and Tara Glover were credited with two RBI apiece.
Utah def. Wisconsin, 3-2
Nielson picked up her eighth win in 2011 with her fifth complete game of the year against the Badgers. In 7.0 innings, Nielson allowed one earned run on four hits to go with a career-high 13 strikeouts and only four walks. Nielson improved to 8-8 on the year.
Hoopiiaina was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI against the Badgers and Myers was 2-for-3.
With the game tied at two runs apiece in the seventh, Myers drew a leadoff walk then Tia Palauni walked for the fourth time in the game before pinch hitter Hannah Clements reached on an infield single to load the bases before a ground ball hit by Brooke Olson was misplayed by the Badger shortstop that gave the Utes the walk-off win.
Florida State def. Utah, 7-3
Five different Utes had multi-hit efforts in the second game of the day against Florida State, but Utah suffered a 7-3 loss to the host Seminoles. Glover, Myers, Sweet, Olson and Holm all gathered two hits apiece while Glover also drove in a pair of runs for the Utes.
The Utes got off to an excellent start with a three-run third inning. Unfortunately, a four-run fifth inning by Florida State gave the Seminoles the lead for good before adding three more scores in the sixth frame to make the final score 7-3.
The Utes will take on Southern Utah in a doubleheader on Wednesday in Cedar City, Utah. First pitch of game one is slated for 1 p.m. MT.
BASEBALL
HOUSTON - Kentucky broke a 1-1 tie in the eighth inning to defeat the Utah baseball team, 2-1, closing out the Houston College Classic.
Utah (2-6) starter Joe Pond and Kentucky's Jordan Cooper spent most of the game in a pitchers duel. Utah got to Cooper quickly, putting up the first run of the game in the first inning. James Brooks and Michael Beltran had back-to-back singles before C.J. Cron hit a liner down the left field line to put the Utes up 1-0.
Although Kentucky had base runners in the first three innings, Pond was able to keep the Wildcats off the board until the fourth when Brian Adams' RBI single after a leadoff walk tied the game at 1-1.
Both teams stranded runners on base as the game advanced. Josh Chapman came in to pitch for Pond in the fifth with two runners on and one out, but got the Utes out of the inning.
Kentucky took the lead in the eighth inning. Braden Kapteyn hit a one-out triple, and although Chapman got the next batter to pop up, Michael Williams singled to drive in Kapteyn for a 2-1 lead. The Wildcats would leave the bases loaded in the inning, but had all they needed to overtake the Utes. Utah struggled to get anything going at the plate in the final innings.
Pond allowed one run on two hits with five strikeouts and four walks over 4..1 innings, while Chapman got the loss, allowing one run on two hits, striking out three. Stephen Streich, Kesley Kondo, Nick Green and Brock Duke all made appearances on the mound. It was Green's first career appearance for the Utes.
Utah returns to the diamond next weekend (March 10-13) at the Jack Gifford Memorial Tournament, hosted by Santa Clara and San Jose State.