SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah capitalized on BYU miscues and took the rubber match Saturday, 15-6, to win the series.

Utah improved to 7-8 overall and 2-1 in the Mountain West Conference, while BYU fell to 9-9 and 1-2.

The Utes rode the bats of C.J. Cron and Cody Guymon who tallied four RBI and four hits, respectively. Cron blasted a three-run homer and teammate Jo Jo Sharrar had a two-run shot in the eighth inning.

One of the few things that went right for BYU was Cron striking out for only the fourth time this year in the first inning by eventual losing pitcher Matthew Neil. The Ute All-American extended his hitting streak to 24 consecutive games.

BYU got solo homers from Andrew Law to lead off the fifth and by pinch-hitter Dillon Robinson to lead off the ninth.

Utah took a 1-0 lead in the first inning thanks to the first of four BYU errors on the afternoon. BYU tied the game in the third when Austin Hall crushed a double to deep centerfield which scored Ryan Bernal.

Utah took a 2-1 lead in the third when Trey Nielsen singled in Cron.

Sprinkles turned into rain in the fifth when BYU's rally was extinguished as Hall was hit by Wes Guenther's batted ball to shortstop which ended the inning with the Utes leading 6-2.

BYU rallied in the two-run sixth when Jaycob Brugman tripled and Ute centerfielder Gavin Green was forced to leave the game after crashing into the wall on that hit. In the seventh, BYU closed to gap to 9-5, but left the bases loaded.

The Cougars travel to Creighton for a two-game series Monday and Tuesday before their home opener on Thursday against San Diego State.

Brigham Young Univ. at Utah
Mar 19, 2011 at Salt Lake City (SpringMobileBallpark)
Brigham Young Univ. 6 (9-9,1-2 MWC)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
WELLS, Stephen cf........  5  0  1  1   0  1  3  0   4
 PADGETT, Wyatt ph.......  1  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   0
LAW, Andrew ss...........  3  1  2  1   2  0  0  1   0
 HANCOCK, Alex ph........  1  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   1
WOLFE, Alex c............  4  0  0  0   1  1  6  2   1
BERNAL, Ryan 1b..........  5  2  2  0   0  2  7  0   0
HALL, Austin 3b..........  3  0  2  1   2  1  0  4   2
GUENTHER, Wes dh.........  4  0  0  0   1  1  0  0   4
CALDWELL, Kelton lf......  4  0  1  0   0  3  1  0   0
 ROBINSON, Dillon ph.....  1  1  1  1   0  0  0  0   0
NIELSEN, Dane 2b.........  3  1  1  0   1  0  7  1   0
 LOPEZ, Bret ph..........  0  0  0  0   1  0  0  0   0
BRUGMAN, Jaycob rf.......  4  1  1  2   1  2  0  1   0
NEIL, Matthew p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 POULSON, Desmond p......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 HOWARD, Chris p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 NYBERG, Chunner p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 SHUTT, Justin p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 MILLER, Jared p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 38  6 11  6   9 13 24 11  14
Utah 15 (7-8,2-1 MWC)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
BROOKS, James ss.........  5  4  2  0   0  0  1  0   1
BELTRAN, Michael 2b......  5  2  2  1   0  1  1  3   2
CRON, C.J. 1b............  4  3  2  4   1  1  6  1   0
COOPER, Shaun lf.........  5  0  0  1   0  2  2  0   0
GUYMON, Cody dh..........  4  1  4  2   1  0  0  0   0
 HUNT, Cory pr...........  0  1  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
NIELSEN, Trey 3b.........  4  0  2  4   0  1  0  0   3
SHARRAR, Jo Jo c.........  3  1  1  2   2  0 14  0   0
SHACKELFORD, Austin rf...  1  0  0  0   0  0  1  1   2
 ALEXANDER, Josh ph/rf...  2  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   2
 RELF, Tyler ph/rf.......  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
GREEN, Gavin cf..........  0  2  0  0   2  0  1  0   0
 GONZALEZ, Tyson cf......  2  1  1  0   0  0  1  0   0
DUKE, Brock p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 MORDINI, Ben p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 POND, Joe p.............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 KONDO, Kesley p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 36 15 14 14   6  5 27  5  10
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 001 012 101 -  6 11  4
Utah................ 101 430 06X - 15 14  2
-------------------------------------------
E - HALL 2(3); NEIL(1); HOWARD(1); BROOKS(7); DUKE(1). LOB - BYU 14; Utah
10. 2B - HALL 2(4); BROOKS(2); NIELSEN(4). 3B - BRUGMAN(2). HR - LAW(1);
ROBINSON(2); CRON(5); SHARRAR(1). HBP - BROOKS; SHACKELFORD. SH -
BELTRAN(8); NIELSEN(1); GREEN, Gavin(2). SF - CRON(2); COOPER(2). SB -
LOPEZ(1).
Brigham Young Univ.    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
NEIL, Matthew.......  2.1  6  2  1  1  2 12 15
POULSON, Desmond....  1.1  1  4  4  3  1  4  9
HOWARD, Chris.......  0.2  1  3  0  1  0  4  6
NYBERG, Chunner.....  1.2  1  0  0  1  0  5  7
SHUTT, Justin.......  1.2  3  3  2  0  1  7  8
MILLER, Jared.......  0.1  2  3  0  0  1  4  4
Utah                   IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
DUKE, Brock.........  5.0  7  2  2  2  7 22 24
MORDINI, Ben........  1.2  3  3  3  3  2  8 11
POND, Joe...........  1.1  0  0  0  3  1  4  7
KONDO, Kesley.......  1.0  1  1  1  1  3  4  5
Win - DUKE (2-0).  Loss - NEIL (1-1).  Save - None.
WP - MORDINI(1). HBP - by NEIL (SHACKELFORD); by POULSON (BROOKS). BK -
POULSON(3); MILLER(1). PB - WOLFE(5).
Umpires - HP: Randy Upton  1B: Dave Yeast  3B: Scott Higgins
Start: 1:02   Time: 3:36   Attendance: 537
Weather: windy & partly cloudy
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 5/cf WELLS; 6/ss LAW; 18/c WOLFE; 10/1b BERNAL;
26/3b HALL; 9/dh GUENTHER; 12/lf CALDWELL; 16/2b NIELSEN; 4/rf BRUGMAN; 36/p
NEIL;
Utah starters: 10/ss BROOKS; 8/2b BELTRAN; 24/1b CRON; 30/lf COOPER; 5/dh
GUYMON; 9/3b NIELSEN; 39/c SHARRAR; 6/rf SHACKELFORD; 40/cf GREEN, Gavin; 20/p
DUKE;
Brigham Young Univ. 1st - WELLS grounded out to 2b. LAW singled to third
base. WOLFE walked; LAW advanced to second. BERNAL struck out looking. HALL
struck out swinging. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Utah 1st - BROOKS doubled to left field. BELTRAN singled to right
center; BROOKS advanced to third. CRON struck out swinging. COOPER reached on a
fielder's choice; BELTRAN advanced to second; BROOKS scored on a throwing error
by p, unearned. GUYMON singled through the right side; COOPER advanced to
second; BELTRAN advanced to third, out at home rf to c. COOPER advanced to
third on a passed ball. NIELSEN struck out swinging. 1 run, 3 hits, 1 error,
2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 2nd - GUENTHER walked. CALDWELL singled to
shortstop; GUENTHER advanced to second. NIELSEN flied out to cf. BRUGMAN flied
out to rf. WELLS singled through the right side; CALDWELL advanced to second;
GUENTHER advanced to third, out at home rf to 1b to c. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0
errors, 2 LOB.
Utah 2nd - SHARRAR walked. SHACKELFORD hit by pitch; SHARRAR advanced to
second. GREEN, Gavin out at first 3b to 2b, SAC, bunt; SHACKELFORD advanced to
second; SHARRAR advanced to third. BROOKS grounded out to 1b unassisted.
BELTRAN fouled out to c. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 3rd - LAW popped up to lf. WOLFE lined out to 2b.
BERNAL singled to left field. HALL doubled to center field, RBI; BERNAL scored.
GUENTHER struck out swinging. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Utah 3rd - CRON singled up the middle. COOPER popped up to 2b. GUYMON
singled to center field; CRON advanced to second. NIELSEN singled to center
field, RBI; GUYMON advanced to second; CRON scored. POULSON to p for NEIL.
SHARRAR reached on a fielder's choice; NIELSEN out at second 3b to 2b; GUYMON
advanced to third. SHACKELFORD lined out to 2b. 1 run, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 4th - CALDWELL struck out looking. NIELSEN reached
on a fielding error by ss. NIELSEN advanced to second on a throwing error by p.
BRUGMAN struck out swinging. WELLS struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 2
errors, 1 LOB.
Utah 4th - GREEN, Gavin walked. GREEN, Gavin advanced to second on a
balk. BROOKS hit by pitch. BELTRAN grounded out to c, SAC; BROOKS advanced to
second; GREEN, Gavin advanced to third. CRON intentionally walked. COOPER
struck out swinging. GUYMON walked, RBI; CRON advanced to second; BROOKS
advanced to third; GREEN, Gavin scored. NIELSEN doubled to right center, 3 RBI;
GUYMON scored; CRON scored; BROOKS scored. HOWARD to p for POULSON. SHARRAR
reached on a fielding error by 3b; NIELSEN advanced to third. ALEXANDER pinch
hit for SHACKELFORD. ALEXANDER grounded out to p. 4 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 2
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 5th - ALEXANDER to rf. LAW homered to right field,
RBI. WOLFE struck out swinging. BERNAL grounded out to 1b unassisted. HALL
doubled to left center. GUENTHER reached on a fielder's choice; HALL out at
second ss unassisted. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Utah 5th - GREEN, Gavin walked. BROOKS singled to pitcher; GREEN, Gavin
advanced to second. BELTRAN reached on a fielding error by p; BROOKS advanced
to second; GREEN, Gavin advanced to third. CRON flied out to cf, SF, RBI;
BELTRAN advanced to second; BROOKS advanced to third; GREEN, Gavin scored,
unearned. NYBERG to p for HOWARD. COOPER flied out to cf, SF, RBI; BELTRAN
advanced to third; BROOKS scored, unearned. GUYMON singled to right center,
RBI; BELTRAN scored, unearned. NIELSEN grounded out to 2b. 3 runs, 2 hits, 1
error, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 6th - MORDINI to p for DUKE. CALDWELL struck out
swinging. NIELSEN singled to center field. BRUGMAN tripled to right center,
RBI; NIELSEN scored. GONZALEZ to cf for GREEN, Gavin. WELLS grounded out to 1b
unassisted, RBI; BRUGMAN scored. LAW walked. WOLFE grounded out to 2b. 2
runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Utah 6th - SHARRAR walked. ALEXANDER reached on a fielder's choice;
SHARRAR out at second 3b to 2b. GONZALEZ fouled out to 2b. BROOKS grounded out
to 3b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 7th - BERNAL singled to center field. BERNAL
advanced to second on a wild pitch. HALL walked. GUENTHER grounded out to 1b
unassisted; HALL advanced to second; BERNAL advanced to third. CALDWELL struck
out looking. NIELSEN walked. POND to p for MORDINI. BRUGMAN walked, RBI;
NIELSEN advanced to second; HALL advanced to third; BERNAL scored. WELLS
grounded out to 2b. 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 3 LOB.
Utah 7th - SHUTT to p for NYBERG. BELTRAN struck out swinging. CRON
flied out to lf. COOPER flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 8th - LAW walked. WOLFE flied out to lf. BERNAL
struck out swinging. HALL walked; LAW advanced to second. GUENTHER flied out to
cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Utah 8th - GUYMON singled to center field. HUNT pinch ran for GUYMON.
NIELSEN out at first p to 2b, SAC; HUNT advanced to second. SHARRAR homered to
left field, 2 RBI; HUNT scored. RELF, Tyler pinch hit for ALEXANDER. RELF,
Tyler grounded out to ss. GONZALEZ singled through the left side. MILLER to p
for SHUTT. GONZALEZ advanced to second on a balk. BROOKS reached on a fielding
error by 3b; GONZALEZ advanced to third. BELTRAN singled up the middle, RBI;
BROOKS advanced to second; GONZALEZ scored, unearned. CRON homered to right
field, 3 RBI, unearned; BELTRAN scored, unearned; BROOKS scored, unearned.
COOPER struck out, out at first c to 1b. 6 runs, 5 hits, 1 error, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 9th - RELF, Tyler to rf. KONDO to p for POND.
ROBINSON pinch hit for CALDWELL. ROBINSON homered to right center, RBI. LOPEZ
pinch hit for NIELSEN. LOPEZ walked. BRUGMAN struck out swinging. PADGETT pinch
hit for WELLS. LOPEZ stole second. PADGETT struck out looking. HANCOCK pinch
hit for LAW. HANCOCK struck out looking. 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

A final league series between BYU and Utah in baseball starts Thursday night in Salt Lake City at Spring Mobile Ballpark as play begins this week in the Mountain West Conference.

BYU (8-7) travels to Utah (4-7) for what also could decide this year’s overall outcome in the Deseret Duel between the two schools. On Thursday BYU’s starting pitcher will be sophomore Taylor Cole (2-1, 1.75), followed by sophomore Chris Capper (0-2, 4.71) on Friday—both games start at 6 p.m. On the mound for the Cougars in Saturday’s 1 p.m. game is junior Matthew Neil (1-0, 2.25).

“Any time we play Utah it’s always a big series,” said BYU coach Vance Law. “Our conference should be strong this year, but our increased pitching depth gives us a much better chance to compete.”

The Utah series also marks the start of Cougar baseball being broadcast live by Radio 960 AM with Brent Norton calling the play-by-play for his 21st season with BYU baseball.

These are the first of four games between BYU and Utah--the first three are MWC games in Salt Lake City, while the April 19 game is a non-conference tilt in Provo. There are 4.5 points at stake in this week’s three-game series, which factors in the annual Deseret First Duel. BYU can pick up enough points to claim the Deseret First Duel trophy with two wins in the series. BYU won the first and third overall duel competitions.