Miller Park
400 E University Parkway Provo UT 84604
PROVO -- Ryan Adams and Jason Garcia combined wins to sweep the day and repeat as Mountain West Conference Tournament Champions, defeating San Diego State 6-4 and 5-3 on Saturday.
With the two wins, the Cougars earn an automatic berth to the NCAA Regionals for the second year in a row. BYU climbs to 29-29-1 on the year, getting to .500 for the first time this seasonk, while the Aztecs fall to 43-22.
Two days after getting chased from the mound in the second inning against UNLV, Adams threw 5.2 innings, earning the first BYU win against the San Diego State this season. Adams allowed four runs on six hits with four strikeouts.
Jake Stubblefield and Matt Carson provided the late-game heroics. With two outs in the bottom of the eighth and trailing by one run, Aztec catcher Brian Manfred tried to score from second on a Jonathon Stephens single to right. Carson cleanly picked up the ball and threw a perfect strike to catcher Lars Birkeland just in time for the tag, ending the inning and San Diego State's comeback attempt.
Stubblefield led off the ninth with a home run to right field to ice the game for the Cougars.
After fighting their way through the loser's bracket, BYU found itself short on pitchers to take on San Diego State. While looking around for a pitcher with a little pop left in his arm, BYU found a hero.
With the most-rested arm on the Cougar pitching staff, Garcia got called on to make just his second start at BYU in front of 2,396 fans at Larry H. Miller Field. He followed with a performance worthy to earn a spot on the MWC All-Tournament team. Garcia went 8.2 innings, giving up just three runs on six hits with six strikeouts.
San Diego State went with its ace, Rory Shortell, on three days rest from his first start. On Wednesday, Shortell went eight innings and only gave up two runs on six hits against New Mexico.
But the Cougars got to him early. In the second inning, Ranger Wiens and Stubblefield drew walks to get things started. Birkeland reached on a fielder's choice, setting up a three-run home run by freshman Ryan Chambers. The Cougars followed with three straight hits, the third an RBI by Dave Jensen to score MWC Tournament MVP Doug Jackson to make the score 4-0.
Garcia picked up the momentum of the Cougar offense and retired 13 of the first 15 hitters he faced. On the night he retired 26 out of 33 batters that stood to face him.
With Shortell spent, Aztec Head Coach Jim Dietz went to Chris Hartshorn to pitch the third inning. Hartshorn followed with 6.2 innings giving up just one run on five hits and striking out five. The only run given up was to Stubblefield, his second opposite-field home run of the day and third of the tournament.
"We were pretty confident because everyone is pulling together at the right time," Stubblefield said. "We're playing the type of baseball now that we should have played all year.
Shortstop Wiens made several outstanding defensive plays for BYU. In the second inning of game one, Wiens robbed Lee of a hit with a diving stab in the hole, then stole a hit from Rielly Embrey in the third with a great play behind second base.
In the eighth inning of game two and the Aztecs trying to battle back, Lee again challenged his fellow shortstop's ability and forced Wiens to go deep in the hole to his right. Wiens fielded the backhand in the grass and got the fleet-footed Lee at first base.
"I haven't seen shortstop played like Ranger played," Law said. "He played exceptionally well. Normally I don't mention things like this to my players, but Ranger made an absolutely major-league play in the hole."
Cameron Coughlan, Garcia, Stubblefield, Wiens and Jackson all made the MWC All-Tournament Team from BYU, with Jackson earning the tournament MVP. Jackson got six consecutive hits, going back to his 4-for-4 performance Friday night.
Brigham Young Univ. at San Diego St.May 25, 2002 at Provo, Utah (Larry H.Miller Field)
Brigham Young Univ. 6 (28-29-1)
Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
JACKSON, Doug cf......... 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 0 0
COUGHLAN, Cameron 2b..... 2 1 1 0 2 0 4 0 0
JENSEN, Dave 1b.......... 4 0 1 1 0 0 3 0 3
CARSON, Matt rf.......... 4 0 0 0 0 1 6 1 0
ITRI, Rob 3b............. 3 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1
WIENS, Ranger ss......... 3 1 1 1 1 0 2 4 0
STUBBLEFIELD, Jake dh.... 4 2 2 1 0 2 0 0 0
BIRKELAND, Lars c........ 3 0 0 0 1 0 7 1 0
CHAMBERS, Ryan lf........ 4 0 0 1 0 0 3 0 0
ADAMS, Ryan p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
WARD, Matt p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
RAY, James p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
DABO, Tyler p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals................... 32 6 8 6 4 5 27 8 4
San Diego St. 4 (43-22)
Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
LEE, Taber ss............ 4 0 2 1 0 0 1 1 0
COTA, Carlo 2b........... 3 0 1 0 2 0 4 0 2
STEPHENS, Jonathan 3b/1b. 5 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 3
EMBREY, Rielly 1b........ 4 0 1 0 0 1 7 0 0
CORONA, Chad 3b......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
HILL, Josh ph........... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
MCLINTOCK, Jake rf....... 4 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0
GWYNN, Anthony cf........ 5 1 3 0 0 0 5 0 3
WILSON, Ryan dh.......... 3 1 0 0 2 3 0 0 2
BURT, Landon lf.......... 3 1 2 0 1 0 4 0 0
MANFRED, Brian c......... 4 1 1 2 0 0 5 3 0
FIEDLER, Erik p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
HARANG, Daryl p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals................... 36 4 11 3 6 6 27 6 12
Score by Innings R H E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 221 000 001 - 6 8 1
San Diego St........ 000 004 000 - 4 11 2
-------------------------------------------
E - JACKSON(12); STEPHENS(4); GWYNN(5). LOB - BYU Cougars 4; Aztecs 12. 2B -
ITRI(16). HR - STUBBLEFIELD(4). HBP - LEE. SF - ITRI(5). SB - COUGHLAN(28).
CS - WIENS(5); BIRKELAND(4); GWYNN(10).
Brigham Young Univ. IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP
--------------------------------------------------
ADAMS, Ryan......... 5.2 6 4 3 4 4 22 27 97
WARD, Matt.......... 1.1 2 0 0 1 1 6 7 20
RAY, James.......... 1.0 2 0 0 1 0 4 5 21
DABO, Tyler......... 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 4 4 12
San Diego St. IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP
--------------------------------------------------
FIEDLER, Erik....... 6.0 7 5 5 3 2 23 27 110
HARANG, Daryl....... 3.0 1 1 1 1 3 9 10 45
Win - ADAMS (6-5). Loss - FIEDLER (1-3). Save - DABO (5).
HBP - by ADAMS (LEE). Pitches/strikes: ADAMS 97/58; WARD 20/14; RAY 21/12; DABO
12/10; FIEDLER 110/68; HARANG 45/26.
Umpires - HP: Dale Luker 1B: Kelly Gonzales 2B: Joe Burleson 3B: Blake Jensen
Start: 3:08 Time: 2:54 Attendance:
Game notes:
Game 10...if SDSU wins,it gets the automatic NCAA berth to the Regionals,
if BYU wins, it will be necessary to play Game 11 scheduled to start at
7 p.m. NCAA berths for regionals are announced on Monday
FIEDLER faced 1 batter in the 7th.
Game: MWC10
Play-by-Play
Mountain West Conference Tournament
Brigham Young Univ. at San Diego St. - Play-by-Play
May 25, 2002 at Provo, Utah (Larry H.Miller Field)
Score by Innings R H E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 221 000 001 - 6 8 1
San Diego St........ 000 004 000 - 4 11 2
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 13/cf JACKSON; 11/2b COUGHLAN; 17/1b JENSEN;
28/rf CARSON M.; 21/3b ITRI; 8/ss WIENS; 33/dh STUBBLEFIELD; 12/c
BIRKELAND; 27/lf CHAMBERS; 25/p ADAMS;
San Diego St. starters: 1/ss LEE; 3/2b COTA; 30/3b STEPHENS; 7/1b EMBREY;
15/rf MCLINTOCK; 2/cf GWYNN; 13/dh WILSON; 8/lf BURT; 11/c MANFRED; 34/p
FIEDLER;
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 1
JACKSON singled up the middle (1-1). COUGHLAN singled to center field
(3-2); JACKSON advanced to third. JENSEN singled to center field, RBI
(1-0); COUGHLAN advanced to third; JACKSON scored. CARSON M. popped up to
1b (1-1). ITRI flied out to lf, SF, RBI (1-2); COUGHLAN scored. JENSEN
out at first p to 1b, picked off. 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 1
LEE singled up the middle (2-1). COTA singled up the middle (2-2); LEE
advanced to second. STEPHENS struck out swinging (1-2). EMBREY flied out
to lf (1-0). MCLINTOCK walked (3-1); COTA advanced to second; LEE
advanced to third. GWYNN flied out to ss (0-1). 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors,
3 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 2
WIENS walked (3-2). STUBBLEFIELD singled through the left side (2-1);
WIENS advanced to second. BIRKELAND flied out to cf (1-0); WIENS advanced
to third. CHAMBERS grounded out to 1b unassisted, RBI (2-2); STUBBLEFIELD
advanced to second; WIENS scored. JACKSON singled to center field,
advanced to second on a fielding error by cf, RBI (0-1); STUBBLEFIELD
scored. COUGHLAN walked (3-0). JENSEN flied out to lf (0-1). 2 runs, 2
hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 2
WILSON walked (3-2). BURT singled to left center (0-1); WILSON advanced
to second. MANFRED reached on a fielder's choice (0-0); BURT advanced to
second; WILSON out at third p to 3b. LEE lined out to ss (0-0). COTA
reached on a fielder's choice (0-1); MANFRED out at second ss to 2b. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 3
CARSON M. flied out to cf (3-2). ITRI doubled through the left side
(1-1). WIENS singled up the middle, RBI (2-2); ITRI scored. WIENS out at
second c to 2b, caught stealing. STUBBLEFIELD struck out swinging (2-2).
1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 3
STEPHENS struck out swinging (3-2). EMBREY grounded out to ss (1-1).
MCLINTOCK flied out to rf (0-1). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 4
BIRKELAND popped up to 1b (1-0). CHAMBERS flied out to cf (0-0). JACKSON
grounded out to ss (2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 4
GWYNN singled to right field (0-1). WILSON struck out looking (2-2). BURT
flied out to lf (0-2). GWYNN out at second c to 2b, caught stealing. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 5
COUGHLAN walked (3-1). COUGHLAN stole second. JENSEN grounded out to p
(2-2); COUGHLAN advanced to third. CARSON M. popped up to 2b (3-2). ITRI
flied out to lf (1-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 5
MANFRED flied out to rf (3-2). LEE hit by pitch (1-1). COTA flied out to
rf (2-0). STEPHENS reached on a fielder's choice (0-0); LEE out at second
ss to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 6
WIENS fouled out to c (0-0). STUBBLEFIELD struck out swinging, out at
first c to 1b (0-2). BIRKELAND popped up to 2b (0-0). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0
errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 6
EMBREY struck out swinging (1-2). MCLINTOCK flied out to rf (2-1). GWYNN
singled to right field (1-2). WILSON walked (3-2); GWYNN advanced to
second. BURT walked (3-2); WILSON advanced to second; GWYNN advanced to
third. MANFRED singled to center field, advanced to second on a fielding
error by cf, advanced to third, 2 RBI; BURT scored; WILSON scored; GWYNN
scored. WARD to p for ADAMS. LEE singled to right field, RBI; MANFRED
scored, unearned. COTA walked (3-0); LEE advanced to second. STEPHENS
flied out to rf (0-1). 4 runs, 3 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 7
CHAMBERS reached on a throwing error by 3b, advanced to second (0-0).
HARANG to p for FIEDLER. JACKSON struck out looking (1-2). COUGHLAN flied
out to cf (1-0). JENSEN flied out to lf (2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 1
LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 7
EMBREY singled to right field (0-1). MCLINTOCK flied out to cf (0-2);
EMBREY advanced to second. GWYNN grounded out to ss (1-2); EMBREY
advanced to third. WILSON struck out looking (1-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 8
CARSON M. struck out swinging (3-2). ITRI struck out swinging (1-2).
WIENS popped up to 2b (1-0). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 8
RAY to p for WARD. BURT singled to center field (1-2). MANFRED reached on
a fielder's choice (2-2); BURT out at second 3b to 2b. LEE flied out to
lf (0-0). COTA walked (3-2); MANFRED advanced to second. STEPHENS singled
to right field (2-2); COTA advanced to second; MANFRED advanced to third,
out at home rf to c. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 9
STEPHENS to 1b. CORONA to 3b for EMBREY. STUBBLEFIELD homered to right
field, RBI (3-2). BIRKELAND walked (3-2). BIRKELAND out at second c to
ss, caught stealing. CHAMBERS flied out to rf (1-1). JACKSON flied out to
cf (2-0). 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 9
HILL pinch hit for CORONA. DABO to p for RAY. HILL grounded out to 1b
unassisted (1-0). MCLINTOCK flied out to rf (0-2). GWYNN singled to
second base (0-0). WILSON struck out swinging (1-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. at San Diego St.
May 25, 2002 at Provo, Utah (Larry H.Miller Field)
Brigham Young Univ. 5 (29-29-1)
Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
JACKSON, Doug cf......... 5 1 1 0 0 1 3 0 3
COUGHLAN, Cameron 2b..... 4 0 1 0 1 0 0 2 0
JENSEN, Dave 1b.......... 5 0 2 1 0 0 10 1 0
CARSON, Matt rf.......... 4 0 1 0 1 1 4 0 1
ITRI, Rob 3b............. 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5
WIENS, Ranger ss......... 3 1 0 0 1 2 0 5 0
STUBBLEFIELD, Jake dh.... 3 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 0
BIRKELAND, Lars c........ 4 1 1 0 0 0 6 0 0
CHAMBERS, Ryan lf........ 4 1 2 3 0 1 3 0 0
GARCIA, Jason p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
MOUSSER, Jeff p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals................... 37 5 10 5 4 6 27 9 9
San Diego St. 3 (43-23)
Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
LEE, Taber ss............ 4 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 1
COTA, Carlo 2b........... 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 2
WILSON, Ryan dh.......... 3 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0
MCLINTOCK, Jake rf....... 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0
HILL, Josh ph/rf........ 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1
GWYNN, Anthony cf........ 4 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 2
STEPHENS, Jonathan 1b.... 4 1 1 0 0 0 7 0 0
BURT, Landon lf.......... 4 0 2 0 0 1 4 0 0
CORONA, Chad 3b.......... 3 1 1 2 1 1 2 2 0
MANFRED, Brian c......... 4 0 0 0 0 2 4 3 2
FIEDLER, Erik pr........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
SHORTELL, Rory p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
HARTSHORN, Chris p...... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
RING, Royce p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals................... 34 3 6 3 4 6 27 10 8
Score by Innings R H E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 040 001 000 - 5 10 2
San Diego St........ 000 100 002 - 3 6 1
-------------------------------------------
E - WIENS(13); BIRKELAND(3); LEE(16). LOB - BYU Cougars 9; Aztecs 8. 2B -
BIRKELAND(8); STEPHENS(11). HR - STUBBLEFIELD(6); CHAMBERS(3); CORONA(10).
SB - COUGHLAN(30); JENSEN 2(12).
Brigham Young Univ. IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP
--------------------------------------------------
GARCIA, Jason....... 8.2 6 3 3 3 6 32 35 127
MOUSSER, Jeff....... 0.1 0 0 0 1 0 2 3 13
San Diego St. IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP
--------------------------------------------------
SHORTELL, Rory...... 2.0 5 4 4 3 1 10 13 43
HARTSHORN, Chris.... 6.2 5 1 1 1 5 26 27 74
RING, Royce......... 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 6
Win - GARCIA (3-1). Loss - SHORTELL (8-7). Save - MOUSSER (1).
BK - GARCIA(4). Pitches/strikes: GARCIA 127/83; MOUSSER 13/6; SHORTELL 43/21;
HARTSHORN 74/51; RING 6/4.
Umpires - HP: Billy Jo Speck 1B: Joe Burleson 2B: Keith Bailey 3B: Kelly
Gonzales Start: 7:03 Time: 2:37 Attendance: 2396
Game notes:
Game 11...McClintock ejected from game in 6th inning with a 2-2 count..NCAA
sites & pairings announced on Monday
Game: MWC11
Play-by-Play
Brigham Young Univ. at San Diego St. - Play-by-Play
May 25, 2002 at Provo, Utah (Larry H.Miller Field)
Score by Innings R H E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 040 001 000 - 5 10 2
San Diego St........ 000 100 002 - 3 6 1
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 13/cf JACKSON; 11/2b COUGHLAN; 17/1b JENSEN;
28/rf CARSON M.; 21/3b ITRI; 8/ss WIENS; 33/dh STUBBLEFIELD; 12/c
BIRKELAND; 27/lf CHAMBERS; 1/p GARCIA;
San Diego St. starters: 1/ss LEE; 3/2b COTA; 13/dh WILSON; 15/rf MCLINTOCK;
2/cf GWYNN; 30/1b STEPHENS; 8/lf BURT; 18/3b CORONA; 11/c MANFRED; 36/p
SHORTELL;
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 1
JACKSON flied out to lf (2-2). COUGHLAN walked (3-0). JENSEN singled to
right field; COUGHLAN advanced to second. CARSON M. struck out looking
(3-2); JENSEN stole second; COUGHLAN stole third. ITRI flied out to lf
(0-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 1
LEE grounded out to 2b (1-2). COTA grounded out to ss (2-2). WILSON
struck out looking (3-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 2
WIENS walked (3-2). STUBBLEFIELD walked (3-2); WIENS advanced to second.
BIRKELAND reached on a fielder's choice (1-0); STUBBLEFIELD out at second
ss to 2b; WIENS advanced to third. CHAMBERS homered to right center, 3
RBI; BIRKELAND scored; WIENS scored. JACKSON singled up the middle (1-1).
COUGHLAN singled up the middle; JACKSON advanced to second. JENSEN
singled to right field, RBI; COUGHLAN advanced to third; JACKSON scored.
JENSEN stole second. CARSON M. flied out to cf (3-1); JENSEN advanced to
third; COUGHLAN out at third rf to p to c to 3b. 4 runs, 4 hits, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 2
MCLINTOCK flied out to lf (2-0). GWYNN flied out to rf (2-1). STEPHENS
flied out to rf (0-0). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 3
HARTSHORN to p for SHORTELL. ITRI flied out to rf (0-0). WIENS struck out
looking (3-2). STUBBLEFIELD struck out swinging, out at first c to 1b
(0-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 3
BURT singled to right field (0-1). CORONA flied out to cf (0-1). MANFRED
flied out to lf (1-0); BURT advanced to second. LEE out at first 1b to p
(3-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 4
BIRKELAND popped up to ss (0-0). CHAMBERS flied out to cf (1-2). JACKSON
flied out to lf (0-0). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 4
COTA singled through the left side (1-2). COTA advanced to second on a
balk. WILSON grounded out to 2b (3-2); COTA advanced to third. MCLINTOCK
grounded out to ss, RBI (1-2); COTA scored. GWYNN flied out to cf (0-0).
1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 5
COUGHLAN grounded out to 3b (1-0). JENSEN flied out to cf (1-2). CARSON
M. singled to right field (0-0). ITRI flied out to lf (0-0). 0 runs, 1
hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 5
STEPHENS grounded out to 3b (2-2). BURT singled up the middle (2-2).
CORONA struck out looking (0-2). BURT advanced to second on a throwing
error by c. MANFRED struck out looking (0-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 1
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 6
WIENS grounded out to ss (1-1). STUBBLEFIELD homered to right field, RBI
(3-1). BIRKELAND doubled to left field (0-0). CHAMBERS struck out
swinging, out at first c to 1b (1-2). JACKSON struck out swinging (1-2).
1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 6
LEE flied out to lf (0-0). COTA struck out looking (1-2). WILSON walked
(3-2). HILL pinch hit for MCLINTOCK. HILL walked (3-2); WILSON advanced
to second. GWYNN grounded out to 1b unassisted. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors,
2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 7
HILL to rf. COUGHLAN grounded out to 3b, bunt (0-0). JENSEN flied out to
cf (1-1). CARSON M. reached on a fielding error by ss (1-2). ITRI flied
out to rf (2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 7
STEPHENS flied out to cf. BURT flied out to rf (1-2). CORONA walked
(3-2). MANFRED struck out swinging (2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 8
WIENS struck out looking (0-2). STUBBLEFIELD singled down the rf line
(0-1). BIRKELAND flied out to cf. CHAMBERS singled to right field (2-0);
STUBBLEFIELD advanced to third. JACKSON grounded out to 2b (0-0). 0 runs,
2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 8
LEE grounded out to ss (1-0). COTA grounded out to ss (0-2). WILSON
singled up the middle (0-1). HILL grounded out to 1b unassisted (2-1). 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. - inning 9
COUGHLAN popped up to 3b (0-0). JENSEN flied out to cf (1-2). CARSON M.
walked (3-1). RING to p for HARTSHORN. ITRI grounded out to 1b unassisted
(2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
San Diego St. - inning 9
GWYNN grounded out to ss (0-1). STEPHENS doubled to center field (0-0).
BURT struck out looking (2-2). CORONA homered to right field, 2 RBI
(0-1); STEPHENS scored. MOUSSER to p for GARCIA. MANFRED reached on a
fielding error by ss (3-1). FIEDLER pinch ran for MANFRED. LEE walked
(3-1); FIEDLER advanced to second. COTA flied out to rf (0-2). 2 runs, 2
hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
There will be a third game for BYU against the Air Force Academy in Provo, but this time it will be in the opening round of the Mountain West Conference Tournament on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Third-seeded BYU, 24-28-1 overall and 15-14 in the MWC, hosts the third annual MWC Tournament at Larry H. Miller Field. First up for the Cougars in the double-elimination tourney is No. 4 seeded Air Force, 7-26 overall and 14-15, whom BYU did not get to play for a third time last month because of travel constraints. On Thursday, the Cougars will play at either 3 p.m. (if they lose Wednesday) against San Diego State or New Mexico or again at 7 p.m. (if they win on Wednesday) against either Utah or UNLV.
"Our record doesn't show the kind of ball club we have," said BYU Coach Vance Law. "I've got confidence that all of our pitchers can get people out."
Should the Cougars win four straight games and claim the MWC automatic berth to the NCAA tournament it would be the first time all season that BYU has posted a .500 record. BYU is the defending MWC Tourney champion and returned to bettering its opponents in MWC games with a .349 average compared to .347 and an ERA of 7.06 compared to 7.08 for the opposition.
In all games, BYU is batting .317 compared to .323 for its opponents and has a 6.85 ERA. First baseman Dave Jensen is the Cougar batting leader with a .394 average from 85 hits, including 26 doubles and 10 homers.
Law tabbed his ace pitcher Jeff Mousser (8-4, 5.09) to start against the Falcons, but hasn't named a starter for the rest of the tournament.
The Cougars split with AFA in Provo at the end of last month, but heavy rains delayed the start of a scheduled third game. The Falcons had a flight to catch that Saturday evening, so league rules did not allow for a make up. BYU has a 3-2 record against AFA this season.
The BYU-AFA game will be broadcast live locally by KOVO Radio (960 AM), but the AFA radio broadcast can be heard on the Internet or read live via webcast at Game Three of the MWC Tourney. All games of the MWC Tournament will be on the Internet via webcasts and games involving AFA, San Diego State and UNLV will be audiocast on the Internet.
Top-seeded San Diego State meets New Mexico at to start the tourney at 11 a.m. Game two of the tourney is Utah versus UNLV at 3 p.m.
Tickets for the MWC Tourney are $75 for a VIP pass, $25 for an All Session Pass, $15 for an student or senior citizen All-Session pass, $12 for an All-Day Pass, $8 for an all-day student/senior citizen pass, $8 for a single game or $5 for a single game for students or senior citizens. There is the possibility of 11 games in the tournament and at least 10 games as it runs its course through Saturday.
Buy your tickets at byutickets.com
