BYU at Pepperdine box score game 1

MALIBU, Calif. (March 29, 2018)—Four different scoring opportunities escaped the grasp of BYU baseball in a 2-0 loss at Pepperdine on Thursday.

The Cougars out-hit the Waves 7-4, but stranded runners in scoring position in the third, fifth, seventh and eighth innings. Conversely, BYU forced Pepperdine to leave runners in scoring position in the first, seventh and eighth frames.

BYU starter Jordan Wood (2-2) was tagged with the loss after giving up only four hits and a solitary walk in seven plus innings. The Cougars are now 13-11 overall and 2-5 in the West Coast Conference.

“Jordan (Wood) was as good today as I've seen him, he gave us a great start but we just couldn't put the offense together for him,” BYU coach Mike Littlewood said. “Wil Jensen did a nice job against us, he didn't have his best stuff but he got big outs when he needed them, especially when we had bases-loaded no outs in the third."

Consecutive singles by Jarrett Perns, Mitch McIntyre and Brennon Anderson loaded the bases in the third inning for BYU. Perns had extended his consecutive hitting streak to 15 games, but was thrown out at the plate on Daniel Schneemann’s fielder’s choice.

The Waves countered with an unearned run in the third and added a second run in the seventh.

In the seventh inning, Nate Favero advanced to second after David Clawson successfully executed a sacrifice bunt. Favero moved to third on a passed ball where he remained.

Anderson led off with another single in the eighth, advanced to second on a balk, then was thrown out at the plate on Schneemann’s single to left center as the Cougars tried to close the gap on a 2-0 deficit. When Brock Hale drew a walk, the Waves brought in a second relief pitcher with their designated hitter Jordan Qsar and got Keaton Kringlen to fly out with two Cougars aboard.

“We hit the ball hard today but the wind held a few of them up,” Littlewood said. "We’ll come back ready play tomorrow (Friday).”

Cottonwood High prep Wil Jensen remained undefeated at 5-0 as Pepperdine’s record improved to 11-13 overall and 3-4 in the WCC. The two teams play the second of a three-game series on Friday at 3 p.m. PDT.

Game notes for UVU, Pepperdine

As the month of March concludes, BYU baseball finishes its series with Utah Valley and plays its first league road games with three games at Pepperdine.

Tuesday’s 6 p.m. MDT game at UVU will likely be an all-staff day for the pitching rotation for both teams in the UCCU Crosstown Clash. UVU has a 9-12 record, BYU is 12-9 and Pepperdine is 10-13. The Cougars and the Waves each have 2-4 records in the West Coast Conference.

“Utah Valley is always a big game for us,” BYU coach Mike Littlewood said. “Traditionally, we haven’t played well at Pepperdine. It will be a challenge at Pepperdine because we have put ourselves in a situation where we need to beat good teams on the road.

“I was proud of the way our guys played last week. We are resilient and saw some good things. We came out of our corner fighting, and that’s all I can ask of our team,” Littlewood said after an 11-game home stand.

BYU will likely continue its pitching rotation at Pepperdine of having Jordan Wood (2-1, 3.43), Hayden Rogers (3-2, 5.14) and Blake Inouye (1-2, 6.04) as starters in games Thursday and Friday at 3 p.m. PDT and on Saturday at 1 p.m.

The Cougars posted a 3-4 record since beating UVU 9-3 earlier this month, while the Wolverines have won four of their last six games.