Rogers and company complete sweep of Pacific with 5-2 win

STOCKTON, California (April 8, 2017)—Portside pitcher Hayden Rogers and BYU baseball took advantage of Pacific errors to earn a 5-2 win on Saturday to complete a three-game sweep.

The Cougars (17-12 overall and 7-2 in the West Coast Conference) pounced on the errors made by the Tigers (12-17 and 2-10) to the tune of four unearned runs.

Meanwhile, Rogers (now 3-1) rallied from the mound each time he was needed and relied on the defense of his teammates.  

“It’s so nice to have Hayden as our day three starter,” BYU coach Mike Littlewood said. “Today he didn’t have his best stuff, but he battled like crazy for six innings and left with the lead. Keaton (Cenatiempo) did a great job getting the final three outs.”

Cenatiempo earned his team-leading fourth save, slamming the door on the Tigers in the final three innings, retiring the side in order in the seventh and eighth innings.

“My control was better than last week so I was able to pound both sides of the plate,” Rogers said.

Tanner Chauncey got BYU’s first hit of the day in the fourth inning with a single that scored Brennon Anderson. Anderson had drawn a base on balls and advanced to third from a failed pickoff attempt at first.

Chauncey’s single extended his hitting streak to a team-leading eight games, but was one of only six hits, all singles garnered by the Cougars.

The Tigers tied BYU in the fourth, and then the Cougars plated three runs in the sixth inning. In that frame, back-to-back singles by Noah Hill and Anderson led off the Cougar lineup. Chauncey bunted to advance his teammates, but ended up safe at first on an overthrow and the trio later accounted for BYU’s three runs that inning.

Casey Jacobsen got BYU’s fourth single in the seventh and advanced on Hill’s second single of the afternoon prior to Chauncey’s walk, then scored on a wild pitch for the fifth run.

“It was a tough day offensively, but we strung a couple hits together, executed the short game, and put pressure on them the entire game,” Littlewood said.

BYU plays on Tuesday at Utah Valley at 6 p.m., and then hosts Pepperdine in a three-game series starting on Thursday in a return to league action.