BYU softball to host Utah State and second-place San Diego

PROVO, Utah – A conference showdown caps off the week as BYU softball first hosts Utah State Wednesday and West Coast Conference foe San Diego in a three-game series beginning Friday.

The Cougars (30-9, 6-0 WCC) continue their homestand looking to rebound after having their 10-game win streak snapped last week. They host the Aggies Wednesday at 6 p.m. MDT and the Toreros for a Friday doubleheader with game times at 5 and 7 p.m. and senior day Saturday at 1 p.m. The team will be honoring its two seniors Megan Arnold and Lacey Hofstedt.

Hofstedt continues her stellar season leading the team with a .465 batting average while extending her hitting streak to a career-long 10 games last week. Gordy Bravo is second on the team at the plate, batting .453 with two home runs and 22 RBI.

Coco Tauali’i knocked in three runs with her two-out home run in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game at 5-5 agaisnt Southern Utah. She has a team-high eight dingers on the season. Ashley Thompson is second on the squad with seven and Sydney Broderick has six. 

Pitcher McKenna Bull is 26-6 with 183 strikeouts on the season. She currently is tied for second in BYU history for single-season wins. Her 2.09 ERA has helped pace the BYU defense.

Bull has received run support all season from the team with Mercedes O’Connor leading the team with 36 RBI. Thompson has 34 and Broderick has 33 RBI on the year.

Links to video and live stats will be available on the softball schedule page.

Utah State (Wed. 6 p.m. MDT | BYUtv | BYU Radio)

The Aggies (16-30, 8-10 Mountain West Conference) have lost five games in a row and face Weber State for a doubleheader Tuesday before traveling down to Provo for their second game this season with the Cougars. BYU took the first game in Logan, winning 13-2 in five innings.

Utah State’s offense is powered by Sarah Chow (.432 BA, 6 SB), Alleyah Armendariz (.341 BA, 9 HR, 23 RBI) and Hailey Froton (.354 BA, 2 HR, 41 RBI). Noelle Johnson (14-14, 3.73 ERA) has seen the bulk of the innings from the circle.

San Diego (Fri. 5 & 7 p.m. MDT (The W.tv) | Sat. 1 p.m. (BYUtv))

The Toreros (28-18, 7-2 WCC) recently set a program record in total wins for a season with 28 as they took two out of three games against Santa Clara. San Diego boasts the second-best record in the WCC with conference losses coming against Santa Clara and LMU. The Torero offense is highlighted by freshman Kailey Hill (.388 BA, 12 HR, 31 RBI) and sophomore Olivia Sandusky (.336 BA, 3 HR, 21 RBI, 8 SB). Freshman pitcher Paige von Sprecken (21-8, 1.83 ERA) leads San Diego from the circle.