PROVO, Utah–– Saint Mary's looked to stage another 6-run comeback in the series opener at BYU, but the Gaels' efforts fell short as SMC dropped their first WCC contest of the season, 10-6.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Saint Mary's struck first in Thursday night's series opener. With one out, junior Kevin Milam reached with a 1-out base hit. Freshman Bryce Willits followed with an inside-out base hit to left field which got by the fielder. As a result, Willits reached third, scoring Milam from first. Then, on the following pitch, junior Ryan Novis delivered Willits from third with a base hit through the left side. At the end of the inning, SMC led 2-0.
- The Cougars responded with five runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning. Their runs came from a pair of homers off of the bats of Hale (a 3-run shot) and McIntyre (a 2-run homerun).
- BYU pushed two more across in the third thanks to a pair of base hits and RBI from Kringlen and Hill.
- Hale hit his second homerun and the Cougars' third of the game in the bottom of the fourth, extending BYU's lead to 8-2.
- Junior Joe Vranesh responded with a solo shot (his fifth of the season) in the next half inning which cut the Gaels' deficit to five runs in the fifth.
- With four hits in the bottom of the fifth, BYU added to their run total, going ahead 9-3. However, SMC limited the damage with incredible defense: with the bases loaded and one out, a sharp ground ball was hit up the middle which was only stopped by a diving attempt from senior Eddie Haus. A quick flip to senior Conor Thane and a strong throw to first completed the double play and eliminated the scoring threat.
- Saint Mary's got three runs back in the top of the sixth thanks to a sacrifice fly from Haus, and a walk from sophomore JC Santini and a hit-by-pitch to sophomore Gabe Giosso (each with the bases loaded). The Gaels exited the inning having cut the deficit to just three runs (9-6).
- BYU's McLaughlin entered the game in the top of the seventh and got Vranesh to hit into a 1-out, bases loaded double play to end the inning. He pitched the rest of the game and held the Gaels hitless, stifling any SMC attempt to erase the deficit.
- In the bottom of the seventh, the Cougars picked up their 10th run of the game with a 1-out sacrifice fly after the leadoff batter reached on a fielding error. BYU led 10-6 after seven innings of play.
NOTABLE NUMBERS
- 8: Bryce Willits has stretched his hitting streak to eight games. He is hitting .535 (15-for-28) during that time.
- 4: The Gaels' fourth-straight game with 6 or more runs
- 11: The Gaels struck out 13 Cougars
- 12 :SMC has had 12 games in which their pitchers have recorded 10 or more strikeouts (tonight was their third-straight)
COMING UP
Game two of the series will take place on Friday with first pitch coming at 6:00 p.m. MT. Junior left-hander Ken Waldichuck is set to make his seventh start of the season.
#GaelsRise – Tickets for all upcoming home game are available for purchase
hereon SMCGaels.com or by calling the SMC Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx. Fans can find all live coverage links on SMCGaels.com.