SAN DIEGO -- Brandon Taylor ensured BYU at least a number two seed and first round bye in the Mountain West Conference with a go-ahead, three-run home run in the ninth inning to push the Cougars to a 6-4 victory over San Diego State Wednesday night.

BYU improves to 36-16-1 (20-8, Mountain West Conference) with the victory. The Cougars also move within a half-game of first-place UNLV. The Aztecs fell to 22-32 and 16-12 in MWC play.

SDSU started scoring in the first inning, getting two early runs and an early lead. The Aztecs got some help from two Cougars' errors that plated one unearned run.

San Diego State got another unearned run in the fourth inning when Jordan Swaydan got to second base on a throwing error by BYU. He scored from third on a two-out RBI by James Guerrero.

Once again, the Cougars had trouble figuring out SDSU pitcher Alex Hinshaw. Last month, BYU lost to Hinshaw 10-4. Hinshaw pitched a complete game, striking out 12 Cougars' batters. On Wednesday, Hinshaw only allowed five hits and no runs in seven innings.

Hinshaw left the game after seven and the Aztecs' shut out left soon thereafter. Adrian Molina led of BYU's side of the eighth with an opposite-field single. One batter later, Molina scored on a RBI single by Ben Saylor. Ryan Chambers followed two batters later with an RBI single of his own to cut the lead to 3-2. SDSU's Dan Bruckart was able to get the next two Cougars' batters out to preserve the lead.

The Aztecs added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth on a triple by Swaydan and a RBI single from Quintin Berry.

In the ninth, BYU got a one-out double from Apana Nakayama. Molina then walked to put the potential game-tying runner on base with only one out in the inning. That's when Taylor came up big with his 20th home run to give the Cougars a 5-4 lead. The lead was BYU's first of the game. Kory Knell added a towering homer in the inning for the Cougars.

BYU head coach Vance Law said that the Cougars hit the ball well all night despite not scoring any runs until the eighth inning.

"We hit the ball hard the whole game," Law said. "I just felt like it was a matter of time before some of the balls would fall in for us."

The series continues Thursday at 6 p.m. (PDT). KOVO radio 960 AM will again carry live radio coverage.

Brigham Young at San Diego State
May 18, 2005 at San Diego, CA (Tony Gwynn Stadium)
Brigham Young 6 (36-16-1,20-8 MWC)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
McNAUGHTON, Sean 2b......  5  0  0  0   0  2  1  0   2
VILLEZCAS, Marcos ss.....  5  0  1  0   0  1  1  4   1
NAKAYAMA, Apana dh.......  5  1  1  0   0  0  0  0   2
HIESTAND, Jeff rf........  1  0  0  0   1  1  2  0   0
 MOLINA, Adrian ph/cf....  1  2  1  0   1  0  0  0   0
TAYLOR, Brandon 3b.......  5  1  1  3   0  1  1  2   0
SAYLOR, Ben 1b...........  4  1  3  1   1  0  8  0   0
KNELL, Kory lf...........  4  1  2  1   1  0  2  0   4
CHAMBERS, Ryan cf/rf.....  4  0  2  1   1  0  2  0   2
CLOWARD, Casey c.........  3  0  0  0   0  0  6  1   0
 NELSON, Casey ph/c......  1  0  0  0   0  1  2  0   0
HORLACHER, Dave p........  0  0  0  0   0  0  1  1   0
 JENSEN, Matthew p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 38  6 11  6   5  6 26  8  11
San Diego State 4 (22-32,16-12 MWC)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Berry, Quintin cf........  5  0  2  1   0  0  6  0   0
Guerrero, James ss.......  5  1  1  1   0  0  3  1   2
Ungricht, Brock 1b.......  4  1  1  1   1  1  1  0   1
McLintock, Jake rf.......  4  0  2  0   0  0  3  0   0
Zawadzki, Lance 3b.......  4  0  1  0   1  1  0  0   0
Mendoza, Curt dh.........  3  0  0  0   2  1  0  0   1
Scaperotta, Joseph lf....  4  0  0  0   0  2  6  0   6
Swaydan, Jordan c........  4  2  1  0   0  1  7  0   0
Desme, Grant 2b..........  4  0  0  0   0  2  1  0   0
Hinshaw, Alex p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Esquibel, Andres p......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Bruckart, Dan p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Miller, Will p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 37  4  8  3   4  8 27  1  12
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young....... 000 000 024 -  6 11  4
San Diego State..... 200 100 010 -  4  8  0
-------------------------------------------
Note: 2 outs, 2 runners LOB when the game ended.
E - VILLEZCAS(11); TAYLOR 2(14); SAYLOR(2). LOB - BYU 11; SDSU 12. 2B -
NAKAYAMA(16); UNGRICHT(9); ZAWADZKI(17). 3B - SWAYDAN(3). HR - TAYLOR(20);
KNELL(6). HBP - HIESTAND; MCLINTOCK. CS - BERRY(8).
Brigham Young          IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
HORLACHER, Dave.....  5.0  4  3  0  3  4 21 25
JENSEN, Matthew.....  3.2  4  1  1  1  4 16 17
San Diego State        IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
Hinshaw, Alex.......  7.0  5  0  0  3  5 26 30
Esquibel, Andres....  0.1  2  2  2  1  0  3  4
Bruckart, Dan.......  1.0  2  2  2  1  1  5  6
Miller, Will........  0.2  2  2  2  0  0  4  4
Win - JENSEN (6-1).  Loss - MILLER (1-4).  Save - None.
WP - HORLACHER(7). HBP - by HORLACHER (MCLINTOCK); by HINSHAW (HIESTAND).
Umpires - HP: Bruce Bayne  1B: Phil Gonzales  3B: Daniel Weikle
Start: 6:05 pm   Time: 3:20   Attendance: 783
Brigham Young at San Diego State - Play-by-Play
May 18, 2005 at San Diego, CA (Tony Gwynn Stadium)
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young....... 000 000 024 -  6 11  4
San Diego State..... 200 100 010 -  4  8  0
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young starters: 15/2b McNAUGHTON; 10/ss VILLEZCAS; 24/dh NAKAYAMA; 16/rf
HIESTAND; 3/3b TAYLOR; 25/1b SAYLOR; 12/lf KNELL; 22/cf CHAMBERS; 9/c CLOWARD; 11/p
HORLACHER;
San Diego State starters: 23/cf BERRY; 1/ss GUERRERO; 25/1b UNGRICHT; 15/rf
MCLINTOCK; 5/3b ZAWADZKI; 24/dh MENDOZA; 16/lf SCAPEROTTA; 12/c SWAYDAN; 8/2b DESME;
26/p HINSHAW;
Brigham Young 1st - McNAUGHTON flied out to cf. VILLEZCAS struck out
swinging. NAKAYAMA flied out to rf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego State 1st - BERRY singled to left field. GUERRERO reached on an
error by 1b; BERRY advanced to third. BERRY out at home c to p, caught stealing.
UNGRICHT doubled to left center, RBI; GUERRERO scored, unearned. MCLINTOCK singled
to third base. ZAWADZKI flied out to cf; UNGRICHT advanced to third. MCLINTOCK
advanced to second on a wild pitch. MENDOZA reached on an error by 3b; MCLINTOCK
advanced to third; UNGRICHT scored, unearned. SCAPEROTTA struck out swinging. 2
runs, 3 hits, 2 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young 2nd - HIESTAND struck out swinging. TAYLOR struck out looking.
SAYLOR singled. KNELL singled to right field; SAYLOR advanced to second. CHAMBERS
flied out to lf. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego State 2nd - SWAYDAN popped up to 3b. DESME grounded out to p, bunt.
BERRY grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young 3rd - CLOWARD flied out to lf. McNAUGHTON struck out swinging.
VILLEZCAS flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego State 3rd - GUERRERO grounded out to 3b. UNGRICHT walked. MCLINTOCK
hit by pitch; UNGRICHT advanced to second. ZAWADZKI flied out to lf. MENDOZA walked;
MCLINTOCK advanced to second; UNGRICHT advanced to third. SCAPEROTTA flied out to
lf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 3 LOB.
Brigham Young 4th - NAKAYAMA lined out to cf. HIESTAND hit by pitch. TAYLOR
flied out to cf. SAYLOR walked; HIESTAND advanced to second. KNELL flied out to rf.
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego State 4th - SWAYDAN reached on an error by 3b, advanced to second.
DESME struck out swinging. BERRY flied out to cf; SWAYDAN advanced to third.
GUERRERO singled to right center, RBI; SWAYDAN scored, unearned. UNGRICHT grounded
out to ss. 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young 5th - CHAMBERS singled to center field. CLOWARD fouled out to
c. McNAUGHTON struck out swinging. VILLEZCAS flied out to cf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
San Diego State 5th - MCLINTOCK flied out to rf. ZAWADZKI struck out
swinging. MENDOZA walked. SCAPEROTTA struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young 6th - NAKAYAMA flied out to lf. HIESTAND walked. TAYLOR popped
up to ss. SAYLOR singled to right field; HIESTAND advanced to second. KNELL flied
out to lf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego State 6th - JENSEN to p for HORLACHER. SWAYDAN struck out looking.
DESME struck out swinging. BERRY reached on an error by ss. GUERRERO popped up to
ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young 7th - CHAMBERS walked. CLOWARD popped up to 1b. McNAUGHTON
flied out to lf. VILLEZCAS singled through the left side; CHAMBERS advanced to
second. NAKAYAMA reached on a fielder's choice; VILLEZCAS out at second ss to 2b.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego State 7th - UNGRICHT grounded out to 3b. MCLINTOCK grounded out to
ss. ZAWADZKI doubled to center field. MENDOZA flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young 8th - MOLINA pinch hit for HIESTAND. ESQUIBEL to p for HINSHAW.
MOLINA singled to right field. TAYLOR flied out to rf; MOLINA advanced to second.
SAYLOR singled to center field, RBI; MOLINA scored. KNELL walked; SAYLOR advanced to
second. BRUCKART to p for ESQUIBEL. CHAMBERS singled to center field, RBI; KNELL
advanced to second; SAYLOR scored. NELSON pinch hit for CLOWARD. NELSON struck out
swinging. McNAUGHTON reached on a fielder's choice; CHAMBERS out at second ss
unassisted. 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego State 8th - MOLINA to cf. CHAMBERS to rf. NELSON to c. SCAPEROTTA
grounded out to 1b unassisted. SWAYDAN tripled to right center. DESME popped up to
2b. BERRY singled to center field, RBI; SWAYDAN scored. GUERRERO grounded out to ss.
1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young 9th - VILLEZCAS flied out to cf. NAKAYAMA doubled to center
field. MOLINA walked. MILLER to p for BRUCKART. TAYLOR homered, 3 RBI; MOLINA
scored; NAKAYAMA scored. SAYLOR flied out to lf. KNELL homered, RBI. CHAMBERS popped
up to ss. 4 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego State 9th - UNGRICHT struck out looking. MCLINTOCK singled to right
field. ZAWADZKI walked; MCLINTOCK advanced to second. MENDOZA struck out swinging.
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

Three games are critical for BYU and San Diego State as they start a three-game baseball series Wednesday in San Diego.

The Aztecs are three games behind BYU, who stands alone in second place, one game behind UNLV.

If BYU can win three games in the season finale at SDSU, and have Utah upset UNLV once, then the Cougars could tie for first place and claim the No. 1 league tournament seed. The tiebreaker favors BYU against UNLV, but it all hinges on the Cougar-Aztec series.

The Cougars have a 2-1 advantage in the SDSU series last month at Provo and bring a 35-16-1 overall record and a 19-8 Mountain West Conference mark into this week's action. The Aztecs are 22-31 and 16-11.

These games are moved up a day from the rest of the conference teams who also finish a day earlier than normal. BYU's series at San Diego begins on Wednesday because of finals and graduation at SDSU. Game times are 6 p.m. (PDT) for Wednesday and Thursday, and 1 p.m., on Friday.

Starting for BYU on the mound to open the series is Dave Horlacher (5-2, 4.13). Lefty Lance Beus (1-1, 6.99) and James Platt (3-1, 6.41) are scheduled to start Thursday and Friday's games for BYU.

Among those to keep an eye on for the Cougars are Jeff Hiestand and Brandon Taylor. Hiestand just had his hitting streak stopped at 29 games, but has been on base the past 32 games. Taylor is currently ranked second nationally in RBI with an average of 1.49; seventh nationally in home runs per game, averaging .37; 12th nationally in slugging, averaging .735; and 40th nationally in runs per game with an average of 1.18.

All of the BYU-SDSU games can be heard live locally on KOVO Radio (960 AM) or live on the Internet through links at www.byucougars.com.

The Cougars bused to San Diego, but will return to Utah on Saturday for next week's MWC Tournament in Salt Lake City.

A multi-page release can be found by downloading the PDF file at the top of this story, which gives a detailed analysis of the Cougars.