OREM, Utah—A seventh-inning comeback attempt by BYU softball fell short, as the Cougars dropped a 3-2 matchup with Utah Valley Saturday, the third game of a four-game weekend series.

Katie Manuma and Gordy Bravo picked up one RBI apiece for the Cougars.

BYU recorded a run quickly in the first after JC Clayton was walked on the first at bat. Two Cougars grounded out, advancing Clayton to second before Manuma doubled to left field, bringing home Clayton. BYU held UVU in the bottom of the first inning, allowing only one hit. UVU retired with a player on base.

The Cougars held UVU without a run until the bottom of the fifth frame. With runners on first and third, a Wolverine single down the left field line pushed Kylee Brinkerhoff to home, tying the run count at 1-1.

UVU scored again in the sixth with a homer, but BYU prevented any more runs in the inning.

Bravo tied up the game in the seventh inning, batting in Bailie Hicken, who pinch ran for Coco Taualii, to bring the run count to 2-all. But in the bottom of the inning, a UVU single brought in a Wolverine runner to give the game to UVU 3-2 for its second walk-off of the series. 

BYU and UVU play their final game of the series Saturday at 3 p.m. MDT.

PROVO, Utah--The BYU softball team will play Utah Valley in a conference series on Friday and Saturday before traveling to Logan on Wednesday for a matchup against in-state rival Utah State. 

Utah Valley

Fri.-Sat., Apr. 5-6, 2013

2 & 4 p.m. MDT, 1 & 3 p.m. MDT

Wolverine Field

Utah State

Wed., Apr. 10, 2013

4 p.m. MDT

Johnson Softball Field

BYU QUICK HITS

• BYU is 25-1 overall against UVU and 30-2 overall against Utah State. The Cougars have a 17-game win streak against the Wolverines and a 10-game win streak against the Aggies.
• Gordy Bravo highlighted the offensive effort for BYU in its three losses against Houston. She hit .500 (4x8) with two doubles, two RBI and one run scored.
• Senior shortstop JC Clayton broke the all-time hit record at BYU in the team’s four-game series against USD. Clayton has 274 career hits and a team- and conference-leading 49 hits this season. Clayton has been named PCSC Player of the Week three times this year.
• The Cougars started conference play with a sweep at San Diego to lead the conference standings with a 4-0 record. UVU is in close second with a 5-3 record in its two conference series so far.

OPPONENT NOTES

UTAH VALLEY

Utah Valley is 20-12 on the season and 5-3 in the PCSC standings. The team’s .279 average is good for second-highest in the PCSC. The Wolverines lead the conference in triples with eight and are second in home runs (16), total bases (341) and doubles (33). The team has four batters hitting over .300 so far this season in junior Amanda Robinson, senior Krystin Jachim, freshman Morgan Summers and senior Kylee Brinkerhoff. Batting a .394 clip, Robinson leads the team in hits (39), home runs (4), total bases (56) and slugging percentage (.566). Jachim is not far behind with a .393 average and leads the team in conference statistics, batting .417 with 10 hits. Freshman Dynasty Lauvai has brought in the most runs for UVU with 21 RBI alongside eight extra-base hits. The mound has been occupied by senior Tiffany Mills (117.0) and sophomore Josi Summers (67.2). Mills sports a 1.97 ERA alongside 90 strikeouts and a .218 opponent average. She also has a 1.58 ERA in conference play. Summers is 7-5 for the Wolverines and has compiled 72 strikeouts and given up just 30 earned runs on the season. She has a team-leading 0.78 ERA in conference play. The Wolverines will play Weber State in a doubleheader on Wednesday before playing the Cougars in a four-game conference series on Friday and Saturday.

UTAH STATE

USU returned eight starters from last year's squad, but had a rough start to the season with a 20-game losing streak before snatching up their first win against Weber State on March 13. After that win, the team went on to a five-game winning streak, but have since lost eight straight to fall to 5-28. The Aggies will face Idaho State on Wednesday, UTSA on Friday and Saturday and Utah Valley on Tuesday before returning home to face the Cougars on Wednesday. The team is led by senior infielder Christine Thomsen, who is hitting a .320 clip. Junior Kassandra Uchida leads the team with 24 hits, while sophomore Nicole Arata provides power in the lineup with a team-leading two home runs. Senior Mandy Harmon, freshman Noelle Johnson and senior Shelbi Tyteca have all found time on the mound this year. Harmon has pitched the most innings at 83.2 and has given up 62 earned runs on a .307 opponent batting average. Johnson leads the pitching staff with 69 strikeouts in 79 innings pitched. Tyteca has a 2-1 record in her 44 innings pitched and has given up 36 earned runs on 53 hits. The Aggies are 0-6 in Western Athletic Conference play.

IN-STATE RIVALRY

BYU is scheduled to play four of the six in-state softball teams this season in Utah Valley, Utah State, Southern Utah and Utah. The Cougars have an overall record of 126-22 (.851) against in-state teams and last year went 10-0 with four wins against SUU, three against UVU and three against USU. BYU has a current win streak of 17 games against UVU and outscored the Wolverines 157-28 in those games. The last time UVU beat BYU was at Wolverine Field on May 2, 2006. The Cougars are currently on a 10-game winning streak against the Aggies and outscored them 87-22 in those 10 games. The last time BYU was defeated by USU was at Gail Miller Field on Apr. 4, 2006. 

WHERE TO WATCH

Every game will be available to follow via live stats. Check the schedule for updated information as it becomes available.