PROVO -- A ninth-inning rally for BYU fell short as it lost 5-4 to Utah in Tuesday's home opener at Larry H. Miller Field.

Matt Jensen (0-3, 5.06) kept the Utes at bay for seven strong innings and left the game with the game tied at two in a non-decision situation. He allowed just two runs on seven hits while walking two and striking out five. With the loss the Cougars drop to 4-12 while Utah evens their record at 8-8 in the rare non-conference tilt.

"This is the best we've competed all year," said BYU Coach Vance Law, "but we came out on the short end tonight."

In the bottom of the ninth BYU put its first two runners on base, bringing Kent Walton up with no outs. After Walton laid down a perfect sac bunt, game winner Brad DeVore (3-1, 1.22) intentionally walked Marcos Villezcas to load the bases and bring up Cougar slugger Jeff Hiestand. Hiestand walked on four pitches to score pinch runner Seth Johnson. Batting next with the bases loaded, Ben Saylor lined out to the Utah shortstop who then stepped on second for the double play to end the game.

In the top of the first inning Jensen looked sharp as he struck out two swinging while retiring the side in order. Jensen continued to baffle the Ute hitters in the second as he struck out his third hitter looking before Villezcas and the BYU defense turned a picture-perfect six-four-three double play to end the inning.

The Cougars struck first in the second when Saylor reached on an error to short before Adrian Molina knocked him all the way over to third on a missed double play attempt by the Ute defense. Batting next Blake Crosby poked a single through the right side of the infield, scoring Saylor and moving Molina over to third.

The Utes took a lead in the top of the third on a two-run home run by Corey Shimada over the right field fence. Then with runners on second and third Crosby then cut down a potential run at home on a fielder's choice. With two out and two on Jensen got the final batter to strike out looking on a full count to end the threat.

Jensen continued to catch the inside corner against Ute lefties as he recorded his fourth strikeout of the night in the top of the fifth.

In the top of the sixth Jensen helped his own cause by starting a one-six-three double play with no outs. Jensen then barely missed the final out on a comebacker up the middle. With two outs and two men on, Joe Mozeleski crushed a ball to left but Walton made a slick catch right at the wall to end the inning.

Leading off the bottom of the sixth inning Saylor smoked a double right down the right field line, just out of the reach of first baseman Jay Brossman. Molina was then hit by a pitch trying to bunt to bring Crosby to the plate with no outs. Crosby reached on an error by the third baseman to load the bases and send Greg Krause to the showers. Casey Nelson then grounded into a double play while Saylor scored from third to tie the score at two.

After Jensen retired the first two batters, Crosby closed out the top of the seventh with a brilliant diving stab at a hot line drive by Ryan Khourey to head to the bottom of the inning with the game still knotted at two.

Leading off to start the eighth, Austin Carter poked a single up the middle and then advanced all the way to third on a botched pickoff by Shad McCord. With Carter standing on third Kent Walton lofted a ball deep enough to center for Carter to score just under the tag and put the Cougars up 3-2.

"It's amazing how quickly emotions can change," said Coach Law of a game that saw three lead changes and two ties.

Southpaw Cortland Andrews took over on the mound for the Cougars to start the eighth. After allowing a single to start the inning, Andrews then started a nifty one-six-three double play, BYU's third of the game, before getting pinch hitter Breeze Stringham to fly out to right. This game marks the first time this season BYU has recorded three double plays.

A lead-off walk issued to Saylor to start the eighth knocked McCord out of the game before Molina moved the runner over to second on Utah's fifth error of the game. Saylor was then cut down at third on a bunt attempt to put men on first and second with one out.

The Utes then turned their own double play to end BYU's threat and stay within striking distance of the Cougars.

The Utes started swinging in the top of the ninth as they put men on second and third against James Platt with one out. With the Cougar infield playing in, Ute catcher Adam Frank poked a ball over Crosby's head into left, allowing two runners to score to put Utah up 4-3. The Utes then scored another run to make it 5-3 going into the bottom of the ninth.

While the Cougars have struggled through some close losses this season up to date, Coach Law remains positive about the direction the team is headed saying, "we are not going to dwell on the unlucky side of it, we've got to make things happen."

On an opening night at Miller Park where admission was free, 1,147 Cougar faithful braved the chilly temperature to see BYU play their in-state rival Utah Utes.

BYU continues its play at home this week with three games against New Mexico State starting Thursday at 7 p.m.

University of Utah at Brigham Young Univ.
Mar 14, 2006 at Provo, Utah (Larry H Miller Field)
University of Utah 5 (8-8)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
KHOURY, Ryan ss..........  4  0  1  1   1  1  6  5   0
BALDWIN, Bret 2b.........  5  0  2  0   0  1  3  2   1
BROSSMAN, Jay 1b.........  4  0  1  0   0  1  8  0   0
MALONE, Scott dh.........  3  0  1  0   0  1  0  0   2
 STRINGHAM, Breeze ph....  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
WELSH, John cf...........  4  0  2  0   0  1  4  0   0
KEMP, Erich 3b...........  3  1  1  0   1  0  1  1   0
MOZELESKI, Joe rf........  4  2  2  0   0  0  0  0   2
FRANK, Adam c............  4  1  1  2   0  0  1  0   1
SHIMADA, Corey lf........  3  1  1  2   0  0  4  0   0
 TUMMOLO, Mike ph/lf.....  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
JAMES, Rory p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 KRAUSE, Greg p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 McCORD, Shad p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 DEVORE, Brad p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
Totals................... 36  5 12  5   2  5 27 10   6
Brigham Young Univ. 4 (4-12)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
CARTER, Austin dh........  5  1  2  0   0  0  0  0   4
WALTON, Kent lf..........  3  0  0  1   0  0  2  0   0
VILLEZCAS, Marcos ss.....  3  0  1  0   2  0  2  5   0
HIESTAND, Jeff 1b........  4  0  0  1   1  0  9  0   1
SAYLOR, Ben rf...........  4  2  1  0   1  0  2  0   3
MOLINA, Adrian cf........  3  0  0  0   0  0  1  0   0
CROSBY, Blake 3b.........  4  0  2  1   0  0  1  2   0
NELSON, Casey c..........  4  0  1  0   0  0  8  0   1
BANKS, Stetson 2b........  2  0  0  0   0  1  2  4   1
 WORTHAM, Jake ph........  0  0  0  0   1  0  0  0   0
 JOHNSON, Seth pr........  0  1  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
JENSEN, Matt p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  2   0
 ANDREWS, Cortland p.....  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 PLATT, James p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 HIGHMARK, Chris p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 32  4  7  3   5  1 27 14  10
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
University of Utah.. 002 000 003 -  5 12  5
Brigham Young Univ.. 010 001 101 -  4  7  0
-------------------------------------------
E - KHOURY; BROSSMAN; KEMP 2; McCORD. DP - Utah Utes 3; BYU Cougars 3. LOB -
Utah Utes 6; BYU Cougars 10. 2B - BALDWIN; MOZELESKI; SAYLOR. HR -
SHIMADA(1). HBP - MOLINA. SH - WALTON; BANKS. SF - WALTON. SB - KHOURY;
WELSH.
University of Utah     IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
JAMES, Rory.........  3.1  4  1  0  1  1 16 17
KRAUSE, Greg........  1.2  1  1  1  0  0  6  8
McCORD, Shad........  2.0  1  1  0  1  0  5  7
DEVORE, Brad........  2.0  1  1  1  3  0  5  9
Brigham Young Univ.    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
JENSEN, Matt........  7.0  7  2  2  2  5 26 28
ANDREWS, Cortland...  1.0  1  0  0  0  0  3  3
PLATT, James........  0.1  3  3  3  0  0  4  4
HIGHMARK, Chris.....  0.2  1  0  0  0  0  3  3
Win - DEVORE (3-1).  Loss - PLATT (0-1).  Save - None.
HBP - by KRAUSE (MOLINA).
Umpires - HP: Randy Upton  1B: Al White  3B: Terry Balser
Start: 6:03 pm   Time: 3:10   Attendance: 1147
Game notes:
This is a non-league game.
Game time was moved up from 7 p.m. to 6 p.m.
KRAUSE faced 3 batters in the 6th.
McCORD faced 1 batter in the 8th.
University of Utah at Brigham Young Univ. - Play-by-Play
Mar 14, 2006 at Provo, Utah (Larry H Miller Field)
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
University of Utah.. 002 000 003 -  5 12  5
Brigham Young Univ.. 010 001 101 -  4  7  0
-------------------------------------------
University of Utah starters: 2/ss KHOURY; 8/2b BALDWIN; 18/1b BROSSMAN; 39/dh
MALONE; 1/cf WELSH; 16/3b KEMP; 22/rf MOZELESKI; 10/c FRANK; 3/lf SHIMADA; 38/p
JAMES;
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 6/dh CARTER; 9/lf WALTON; 10/ss VILLEZCAS; 32/1b
HIESTAND; 25/rf SAYLOR; 1/cf MOLINA; 30/3b CROSBY; 8/c NELSON; 3/2b BANKS; 21/p
JENSEN;
University of Utah 1st - KHOURY grounded out to 3b. BALDWIN struck out
swinging. BROSSMAN struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 1st - CARTER grounded out to p. WALTON flied out to cf.
VILLEZCAS singled up the middle. HIESTAND flied out to lf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
University of Utah 2nd - MALONE singled to third base. WELSH struck out
looking. KEMP grounded into double play ss to 2b to 1b; MALONE out on the play. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 2nd - SAYLOR reached on a fielding error by ss. MOLINA
reached on a fielder's choice; SAYLOR advanced to second on a throwing error by 3b,
advanced to third. CROSBY singled to right field, RBI; MOLINA advanced to third;
SAYLOR scored, unearned. NELSON lined out to ss. BANKS struck out swinging. CARTER
reached on a fielder's choice; CROSBY out at second ss to 2b. 1 run, 1 hit, 2
errors, 2 LOB.
University of Utah 3rd - MOZELESKI singled to right field. FRANK grounded out
to p; MOZELESKI advanced to second. SHIMADA homered to right field, 2 RBI; MOZELESKI
scored. KHOURY walked. BALDWIN doubled to left field; KHOURY advanced to third.
BROSSMAN reached on a fielder's choice; KHOURY out at home 3b to c. MALONE struck
out looking. 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 3rd - WALTON popped up to 2b. VILLEZCAS walked. HIESTAND
popped up to ss. SAYLOR flied out to lf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
University of Utah 4th - WELSH singled to shortstop. KEMP out on batter's
interference. MOZELESKI popped up to c. FRANK reached on a fielder's choice; WELSH
out at second ss to 2b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 4th - MOLINA grounded out to ss. CROSBY singled to center
field. NELSON singled through the right side; CROSBY advanced to third. KRAUSE to p
for JAMES. BANKS grounded out to 1b unassisted, SAC; NELSON advanced to second.
CARTER flied out to cf. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
University of Utah 5th - SHIMADA flied out to lf. KHOURY struck out swinging.
BALDWIN grounded out to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 5th - WALTON grounded out to ss. VILLEZCAS flied out to
cf. HIESTAND popped up to 1b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
University of Utah 6th - BROSSMAN singled up the middle. MALONE grounded into
double play p to ss to 1b; BROSSMAN out on the play. WELSH singled to pitcher. WELSH
stole second. KEMP walked. MOZELESKI flied out to lf. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 6th - SAYLOR doubled down the rf line. MOLINA hit by
pitch. CROSBY reached on a fielding error by 3b; MOLINA advanced to second; SAYLOR
advanced to third. McCORD to p for KRAUSE. NELSON grounded into double play 2b to ss
to 1b; CROSBY out on the play; MOLINA advanced to third; SAYLOR scored. BANKS
grounded out to 2b. 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.
University of Utah 7th - FRANK flied out to rf. SHIMADA flied out to cf.
KHOURY lined out to 3b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 7th - CARTER singled through the right side. CARTER
advanced to second on a throwing error by p, advanced to third. WALTON flied out to
cf, SF, RBI; CARTER scored, unearned. VILLEZCAS flied out to lf. HIESTAND fouled out
to lf. 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 0 LOB.
University of Utah 8th - ANDREWS to p for JENSEN. BALDWIN singled to second
base. BROSSMAN grounded into double play p to ss to 1b; BALDWIN out on the play.
STRINGHAM pinch hit for MALONE. STRINGHAM flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 8th - SAYLOR walked. DEVORE to p for McCORD. MOLINA
reached on a fielding error by 1b; SAYLOR advanced to second. CROSBY reached on a
fielder's choice; MOLINA advanced to second; SAYLOR out at third p to 3b. NELSON
grounded into double play ss to 1b; CROSBY out on the play. 0 runs, 0 hits, 1
error, 1 LOB.
University of Utah 9th - PLATT to p for ANDREWS. WELSH grounded out to ss.
KEMP singled to right center. MOZELESKI doubled to left field; KEMP advanced to
third. FRANK singled to left field, advanced to second, 2 RBI; MOZELESKI scored;
KEMP scored. HIGHMARK to p for PLATT. TUMMOLO pinch hit for SHIMADA. TUMMOLO
grounded out to 2b; FRANK advanced to third. KHOURY singled to left field, RBI;
FRANK scored. KHOURY stole second. BALDWIN grounded out to 2b. 3 runs, 4 hits, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 9th - TUMMOLO to lf. WORTHAM pinch hit for BANKS. WORTHAM
walked. JOHNSON, S. pinch ran for WORTHAM. CARTER singled to shortstop; JOHNSON, S.
advanced to second. WALTON out at first 3b to 2b, SAC, bunt; CARTER advanced to
second; JOHNSON, S. advanced to third. VILLEZCAS intentionally walked. HIESTAND
walked, RBI; VILLEZCAS advanced to second; CARTER advanced to third; JOHNSON, S.
scored. SAYLOR grounded into double play ss unassisted; VILLEZCAS out on the play.
1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

After 15 games on the road, BYU baseball begins its home season Tuesday in a rare non-league game against Utah at Larry H. Miller Field.

This is the first of four games on tap this week for the Cougars who seek to improve on a 4-11 record. A BYU win in any of the four games this week would give Cougar Coach Vance Law his 200th victory in his seventh season at the helm.

The Utes bring a 7-8 record into Tuesday's 6 p.m. game where Cougar righthander Matt Jensen (0-2, 9.82) is scheduled to start on the mound. Admission is now free to the BYU-Utah game.

All four games this week will be broadcast live on KOVO Radio (960 AM) with Brent Norton calling the play by play.

Following the game with the Utes, BYU then hosts New Mexico State, 10-12, in non-conference games Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m., and again on Saturday at 1 p.m.

BYU's probable pitching rotation for the New Mexico State series is Patrick Wells (1-3, 6.53), Jesse Craig (0-5, 4.60) and Brandon Christiansen (3-0, 3.68).

"We are looking forward to playing in a more comfortable environment," said Law of BYU's 67-25 (.728) record in five years at Miller Park. "Now that we are at home it gives our players more class time, too."

Following this week's games, BYU hosts four more games next week before traveling to San Diego for a mid-season league tournament the end of the month.

For more information on BYU's baseball team for this week, click on the PDF link at the top of this page.