NATCHITOCHES -- With two out and bases loaded Friday, BYU gambled to clear the bases and tie the score in the ninth but ended up losing 8-7 to Northwestern State.

BYU senior Dane Nielsen hit a two-out double to left field, scoring Alex Wolfe and Dillon Robinson, but pinch runner Alex Hancock was thrown out at the plate, 7-6-2.

Not a bad comeback in the season opener for the Cougars, 0-1, who got off to a rocky start and were behind 6-0 through five innings.

In the fifth inning BYU scored its first run when Andrew Law hit a one-out single up the middle and crossed home on the next play when Wolfe doubled to right field. Wolfe’s double extended his current hitting streak to 13 games along with Austin Hall, who singled in the second inning.

From the 3-1 offering of a new Demon pitcher, Stephen Wells hit a leadoff homer. Law got another one-out single, this time to center field, then stole second and scored on an error which put Ryan Bernal on base, to make the score 7-3. Bernal later scored off Bret Lopez’s pinch-hit double.

Behind 8-4, Law led off the ninth with his third single of the night, advanced to second on Wolfe’s single, stole third and scored on Robinson’s one-out pinch-hit single to center.

The two teams meet again Saturday in an afternoon doubleheader.

Brigham Young Univ. at Northwestern State
Feb 18, 2011 at Natchitoches, La. (Brown-Stroud Field)
Brigham Young Univ. 7 (0-1)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
BRUGMAN, Jaycob rf.......  5  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   0
LAW, Andrew ss...........  5  3  3  0   0  1  1  3   0
WOLFE, Alex c............  4  1  3  1   1  1  9  2   0
BERNAL, Ryan 1b..........  5  1  1  0   0  3  6  0   2
GUENTHER, Wes dh.........  3  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   2
 LOPEZ, Brett dh.........  1  0  1  1   0  0  0  0   0
 ROBINSON, Dillon dh.....  1  1  1  1   0  0  0  0   0
HALL, Austin 3b..........  4  0  1  0   1  2  1  2   0
CALDWELL, Kelton lf......  3  0  1  0   2  2  3  0   2
 HANCOCK, Alex pr........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
NIELSEN, Dane 2b.........  5  0  1  2   0  0  2  1   2
WELLS, Stephen cf........  4  1  1  1   0  1  1  1   1
CAPPER, Chris p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  1  0   0
 HOWARD, Chris p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 NYBERG, Chunner p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
Totals................... 40  7 13  6   4 12 24 10  10
Northwestern State 8 (1-0)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Martinez, J. ss..........  5  0  0  0   0  3  1  3   3
Helenihi, D. cf..........  5  3  4  1   0  1  3  0   0
Bear, C. dh..............  5  2  3  2   0  0  0  0   2
Westbrook, R lf..........  3  1  1  0   0  2  3  0   0
 Buckley, J. lf..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
Keele, R. rf.............  4  0  3  1   0  0  3  0   1
Frias, R. 2b.............  4  0  0  0   0  2  2  0   1
Hinojos, N. 3b...........  4  1  2  0   0  0  0  0   0
Watson, W. 1b............  1  1  0  0   3  0  1  1   0
Munoz, A. c..............  3  0  1  1   0  0 13  0   1
Irvine, L. p.............  0  0  0  0   0  0  1  0   0
 Northcott, D p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 Fredieu, B. p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Lackie, M. p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Robertshaw, p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 34  8 14  5   3  8 27  6   8
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 000 010 303 -  7 13  3
Northwestern State.. 212 110 01X -  8 14  1
-------------------------------------------
E - WOLFE; CALDWELL; WELLS; Westbrook, R. LOB - BY 10; NWLA 8. 2B - WOLFE;
LOPEZ; CALDWELL; NIELSEN; Bear, C.; Keele, R.; Hinojos, N. 2. HR - WELLS.
HBP - Westbrook, R. SH - Westbrook, R. SF - Munoz, A.. SB - LAW 3; Helenihi,
D.; Keele, R.; Frias, R..
Brigham Young Univ.    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
CAPPER, Chris.......  3.2 10  6  5  1  3 17 20
HOWARD, Chris.......  0.1  1  1  0  0  0  2  3
NYBERG, Chunner.....  4.0  3  1  1  2  5 15 17
Northwestern State     IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
Irvine, L...........  6.0  6  1  1  2  7 24 26
Northcott, D........  0.1  2  2  1  0  0  3  3
Fredieu, B..........  0.1  1  1  0  0  1  3  3
Lackie, M...........  1.2  3  3  3  1  3  8  9
Robertshaw,.........  0.2  1  0  0  1  1  2  3
Win - Irvine, L. (1-0).  Loss - CAPPER (0-1).  Save - Robertshaw, (1).
WP - Irvine, L.. HBP - by HOWARD (Westbrook, R). BK - HOWARD. PB - WOLFE.
Umpires -
Start: 6:30   Time: 2:50   Attendance: 867
HOWARD faced 2 batters in the 5th.
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 4/rf BRUGMAN; 6/ss LAW; 18/c WOLFE; 10/1b BERNAL;
9/dh GUENTHER; 26/3b HALL; 12/lf CALDWELL; 16/2b NIELSEN; 5/cf WELLS; 15/p
CAPPER;
Northwestern State starters: 6/ss Martinez, J.; 22/cf Helenihi, D.; 11/dh Bear,
C.; 3/lf Westbrook, R; 14/rf Keele, R.; 13/2b Frias, R.; 20/3b Hinojos, N.;
19/1b Watson, W.; 7/c Munoz, A.; 16/p Irvine, L.;
Brigham Young Univ. 1st - BRUGMAN out at first 1b to p. LAW struck out
looking. WOLFE walked. BERNAL singled to left center; WOLFE advanced to second.
GUENTHER reached on a fielder's choice; BERNAL out at second ss to 2b. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Northwestern State 1st - Martinez, J. fouled out to 1b. Helenihi, D.
singled to left center. Bear, C. singled to left field; Helenihi, D. advanced
to second. Bear, C. advanced to second on an error by cf, advanced to third,
unearned; Helenihi, D. advanced to third on an error by c, scored. Bear, C.
scored on a passed ball, unearned. Westbrook, R struck out swinging. Keele, R.
doubled to left center. Frias, R. struck out swinging. 2 runs, 3 hits, 2
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 2nd - HALL singled up the middle. HALL advanced to
second on a wild pitch. CALDWELL struck out swinging. NIELSEN popped up to rf;
HALL advanced to third. WELLS struck out swinging. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors,
1 LOB.
Northwestern State 2nd - Hinojos, N. doubled down the lf line. Watson,
W. grounded out to 3b; Hinojos, N. advanced to third. Munoz, A. flied out to
cf, SAC, RBI; Hinojos, N. scored. Martinez, J. grounded out to ss. 1 run, 1
hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 3rd - BRUGMAN popped up to ss. LAW popped up to cf.
WOLFE singled up the middle. BERNAL struck out swinging. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Northwestern State 3rd - Helenihi, D. singled, bunt. Bear, C. doubled to
left field, RBI; Helenihi, D. scored. Westbrook, R grounded out to p
unassisted, bunt, SAC; Bear, C. advanced to third. Keele, R. singled, out at
second cf to ss to 2b, RBI; Bear, C. scored. Frias, R. grounded out to ss. 2
runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 4th - GUENTHER flied out to lf. HALL struck out
swinging. CALDWELL walked. NIELSEN reached on a fielder's choice; CALDWELL out
at second ss to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Northwestern State 4th - Hinojos, N. doubled to left field. Watson, W.
walked. Munoz, A. singled, bunt; Watson, W. advanced to second; Hinojos, N.
advanced to third. Martinez, J. struck out swinging; Hinojos, N. out at third c
to 3b, picked off. Helenihi, D. singled up the middle, RBI; Munoz, A. advanced
to second; Watson, W. scored. HOWARD to p for CAPPER. Bear, C. flied out to lf.
1 run, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 5th - WELLS flied out to lf. BRUGMAN flied out to
lf. LAW singled up the middle. LAW stole second. WOLFE doubled to right field,
RBI; LAW scored. BERNAL struck out swinging. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1
LOB.
Northwestern State 5th - Westbrook, R hit by pitch. Westbrook, R
advanced to second on a balk. Keele, R. singled to right field; Westbrook, R
advanced to third. NYBERG to p for HOWARD. Frias, R. reached on an error by lf;
Keele, R. advanced to second; Westbrook, R scored, unearned. Keele, R. stole
third. Hinojos, N. popped up to 1b. Frias, R. stole second. Watson, W. walked.
Munoz, A. reached on a fielder's choice; Watson, W. advanced to second; Frias,
R. advanced to third; Keele, R. out at home p to c. Martinez, J. struck out
swinging. 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 3 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 6th - GUENTHER struck out looking. HALL flied out to
cf. CALDWELL doubled to left center. NIELSEN flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit,
0 errors, 1 LOB.
Northwestern State 6th - Helenihi, D. struck out looking. Bear, C.
fouled out to lf. Westbrook, R singled up the middle. Keele, R. flied out to
lf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 7th - Northcott, D to p for Irvine, L.. WELLS
homered, RBI. BRUGMAN grounded out to p. LAW singled to center field. Fredieu,
B. to p for Northcott, D. WOLFE struck out swinging; LAW stole second. BERNAL
reached on an error by lf, advanced to second; LAW scored, unearned. LOPEZ to
dh for GUENTHER. LOPEZ doubled down the lf line, RBI; BERNAL scored, unearned.
Lackie, M. to p for Fredieu, B.. HALL walked. CALDWELL struck out swinging.
3 runs, 3 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
Northwestern State 7th - Frias, R. struck out looking. Hinojos, N.
grounded out to 3b. Watson, W. walked. Munoz, A. reached on a fielder's choice;
Watson, W. out at second 2b to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 8th - NIELSEN flied out to cf. WELLS flied out to
rf. BRUGMAN struck out looking. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Northwestern State 8th - Martinez, J. struck out swinging. Helenihi, D.
singled through the left side. Helenihi, D. stole second. Bear, C. singled to
center field, RBI; Helenihi, D. scored. Westbrook, R struck out swinging; Bear,
C. out at second c to 2b. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 9th - Buckley, J. to lf for Westbrook, R. LAW
singled to center field. WOLFE singled to right field; LAW advanced to second.
BERNAL struck out swinging. ROBINSON to dh for LOPEZ. LAW stole third. ROBINSON
singled to center field, RBI; WOLFE advanced to second; LAW scored. Robertshaw,
to p for Lackie, M.. HALL struck out swinging. CALDWELL walked; ROBINSON
advanced to second; WOLFE advanced to third. HANCOCK pinch ran for CALDWELL.
NIELSEN doubled to left field, 2 RBI; HANCOCK advanced to third, out at home lf
to ss to c; ROBINSON scored; WOLFE scored. 3 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 1
LOB.

Sophomores pitchers Chris Capper, Taylor Cole and Mark Anderson get the starting nod for BYU’s season openers this weekend at Northwestern State in Natchitoches, La.

Righthanders Capper (4-2, 2.80) and Cole (10-3, 1.37 in 2008 at the College of Southern Nevada) will be BYU’s pitchers in Friday and Saturday’s games at 6:30 p.m., and 2 p.m. CT, respectively. Southpaw Anderson (3-1, 6.14) will be the starter in Saturday’s second game of the doubleheader.

“This is the best pitching staff I’ve had in my 12 years,” said BYU coach Vance Law. “We have 10 solid guys.”

The twice-drafted transfer Cole was the 2008 Scenic West Conference Pitcher of the Year prior to serving a Church mission to Canada.

“We are tired of practicing against one another and are ready to go, well prepared and hope we get off to a good start,” said Law.

Northwestern State was 36-21 last season and returns 18 lettermen, including starters at the infield corners. BYU was 27-31 last year and returns 21 lettermen, including players who have started in all positions with the exception of freshmen outfielders Kelton Caldwell and Jaycob Brugman at left and right fields.

Caldwell and Brugman are two of a possible seven left-handed batters that could appear in the starting lineup.

“Having all of these left-handers is a bonus until we face a tough lefty,” Law said.

Fans can view livestats of all three games through links on www.byucougars.com.

This is BYU baseball’s first time playing in the state of Louisiana. The Cougars beat S.W. Louisiana in 1984 (5-4) at the Best in the West Classic in Fresno, Calif.

Following the trip to Louisiana, the Cougars return home to prepare for the Brooks Wallace Memorial Classic at Texas Tech University next week.