SALT LAKE CITY -- The monkey is off the back of BYU's baseball team as its 15-2 victory Friday over Utah secured the overall trophy in the inaugural Deseret First Duel.

The victory assured BYU the 2007-08 trophy, with an uncatchable 32.5 to 30 advantage over Utah. Only 1.5 points remain in the Deseret First Duel as the baseball portion of that trophy is still in question. Utah leads 2-1 in the baseball standings, but a BYU victory on Saturday could send that trophy to the Cougars if the 25-16 run differential continues to increase to their advantage.

Runs came in clusters for BYU on Friday with five-runs in the seventh and eight-runs in the eighth innings.

"I'm glad it's over and done," said Coach Vance Law of BYU winning the overall Deseret First Duel Trophy. "It was a big thing for us to pull it in for our athletic department."

Coach Law was equally proud of his team, his son and his starting pitcher. Sean McNaughton's two-run double in the seventh was the game-winning RBI.

"We needed to build a cushion and got a great call on the part of Coach (Ryan) Roberts as he did a silent send and Andrew (Law) saw it," said Law of both his son and assistant coach. "Andrew has extra speed and it was a heads up coaching call."

Coach Law also praised the performance of sophomore hurler Blake Torgerson.

"He pitched very, very well and is a great competitor. I'm happy for him, it was one of his better outings of the year."

Torgerson threw 106 pitches and no walks or earned runs through his eight innings to improve to 6-4 as BYU improved to 21-34 overall aod 9-14 in the Mountain West Conference. Utah is 23-25 and 10-13.

Andrew Law, who was five-for-five on the night, alertly stretched his lead-off hit in the third to a double in the third. He advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on Sean McNaughton's groundout to put BYU up 1-0.

In that inning Utah centerfielder Cooper Blanc pulled a muscle tracking down Dan Vargas' fly ball and was replaced by Tyler Relf, younger brother of BYU's DH, Brandon.

Andrew Law scrambled to close the sixth inning with a Ute on base as he caught a foul ball and held on as he ran into the rolled field tarp on the rightfield line. That momentum carried over to the seventh when Steve Parker led off with a homer to left field to put BYU up, 2-0.

With two out and a new Ute pitcher in Tyler Andersen, McNaughton stroked a two-run double down the leftfield line to score Chad Nacapoy and Andrew Law as the Cougars went up 4-0. Vargas followed suit on the next at bat and scored two runs with his homer bringing in McNaughton to increase the margin to 6-0.

Andrew Law tacked on a seventh run with a one-out double in the eighth that scored Jonathan Cluff. Cluff led off that inning with a single and had stolen second.

Utah scored a pair of unearned runs in the eighth due to a Cougar error and a pair of RBI singles. Cluff got those two runs back with a one-out single in the ninth that scored Vargas and Kent Walton from loaded bases as BYU hung an eight spot on the scoreboard.

BYU batted through its order and then some in the ninth. Brandon Relf tripled over his brother's head in center field to score Parker and Cluff and later scored himself on a wild pitch, making the score 12-2. Vargas' two out single scored Law as BYU closed the inning with a 15-2 lead.

The two teams close the regular season on Saturday at 1 p.m., with not only the baseball portion of the Deseret First Duel in the balance, but MWC seeding which could match the two teams again in Tuesday's league tournament at Ft. Worth, Texas.

Brigham Young Univ. at Univ. of Utah
May 16, 2008 at Salt Lake City, Utah (Franklin Covey Field)
Brigham Young Univ. 15 (21-34,9-14  MWC)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
MCNAUGHTON, Sean lf......  6  2  1  3   0  1  0  0   1
VARGAS, Dan ss...........  5  3  3  3   0  1  0  3   0
WALTON, Kent cf..........  5  1  2  0   1  0  1  0   0
KO, Kasey 1b.............  5  0  3  1   0  0 15  0   1
 BILLS, Thomas pr/1b.....  0  0  0  0   0  0  2  0   0
PARKER, Steve 3b.........  3  2  1  1   2  0  1  4   2
 LEACH, J.C. ph..........  1  0  1  1   0  0  0  0   0
 SLOAN, Kevin 3b.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
CLUFF, Jonathan rf.......  4  2  2  2   1  1  3  0   0
 BOWEN, Michael ph/rf....  1  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   3
RELF, Brandon dh.........  5  1  1  2   0  0  0  0   0
NACAPOY, Chad c..........  4  1  0  0   1  2  3  0   2
LAW, Andrew 2b...........  5  3  5  1   0  0  1  8   0
 HERMOSILLO, Kiko 2b.....  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
TORGERSON, Blake p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 MILLER, Jared p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  1  0   0
Totals................... 44 15 19 14   5  6 27 15   9
Univ. of Utah 2 (23-25,10-13  MWC)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
SHIMADA, Corey 2b........  5  1  1  0   0  0  1  3   0
GUYMON, Cody dh/c........  4  0  1  0   0  1  1  0   0
SHRINER, Jesse c/p.......  4  1  1  0   0  0  5  1   0
HENNIS, Dustin lf........  4  0  3  1   0  1  2  0   1
JONES, Austin 1b.........  4  0  0  0   0  0  9  1   3
BLANC, Cooper cf.........  1  0  1  0   0  0  2  0   0
 RELF, Tyler cf..........  3  0  1  1   0  0  3  0   0
BELTRAN, Michael ss......  3  0  0  0   0  0  1  2   2
FERGUSON, Fred rf........  4  0  1  0   0  1  1  0   0
KUROCZKO, Nick 3b........  3  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   2
 WALKER, Devin ph........  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
JAMES, John p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  2  2   0
 ANDERSEN, Tyler p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 WOLFGRAMM, Geoff p......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
Totals................... 36  2  9  2   0  3 27 11   8
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univ.. 001 000 518 - 15 19  2
Univ. of Utah....... 000 000 020 -  2  9  1
-------------------------------------------
E - VARGAS(28); LAW(5); JONES(2). DP - Utah Utes 1. LOB - BYU Cougars 9;
Utah Utes 8. 2B - MCNAUGHTON(21); LAW(4); FERGUSON(10). 3B - RELF(1). HR -
VARGAS(7); PARKER(9). HBP - VARGAS. SH - KO(3); BELTRAN(9). SB - CLUFF(19).
CS - LAW(2).
Brigham Young Univ.    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
TORGERSON, Blake....  8.0  9  2  0  0  3 33 34
MILLER, Jared.......  1.0  0  0  0  0  0  3  3
Univ. of Utah          IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
JAMES, John.........  6.2  5  4  4  3  2 23 27
ANDERSEN, Tyler.....  0.1  4  2  2  0  0  5  5
WOLFGRAMM, Geoff....  1.2  9  9  6  2  3 14 17
SHRINER, Jesse......  0.1  1  0  0  0  1  2  2
Win - TORGERSON (6-4).  Loss - JAMES (3-7).  Save - None.
WP - TORGERSON(4); JAMES(5); WOLFGRAMM(2). HBP - by JAMES (VARGAS).
Umpires - HP: Randy Upton  1B: Jason Rogers  3B: Kevin Daugherty
Start: 6:04 pm   Time: 2:53   Attendance: 992
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 15/lf MCNAUGHTON; 13/ss VARGAS; 9/cf WALTON;
22/1b KO; 5/3b PARKER; 8/rf CLUFF; 4/dh RELF; 50/c NACAPOY; 6/2b LAW; 32/p
TORGERSON;
Univ. of Utah starters: 3/2b SHIMADA; 5/dh GUYMON; 7/c SHRINER; 16/lf HENNIS;
28/1b JONES; 23/cf BLANC; 8/ss BELTRAN; 13/rf FERGUSON; 9/3b KUROCZKO; 35/p
JAMES;
Brigham Young Univ. 1st - MCNAUGHTON grounded out to 2b. VARGAS struck
out swinging. WALTON grounded out to p. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 1st - SHIMADA grounded out to 2b. GUYMON singled up the
middle. SHRINER fouled out to 1b. HENNIS singled through the right side; GUYMON
advanced to second. HENNIS advanced to second on a wild pitch; GUYMON advanced
to third. JONES grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 2nd - KO out at first 1b to p. PARKER walked. CLUFF
walked; PARKER advanced to second. RELF flied out to rf; PARKER advanced to
third. NACAPOY flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 2nd - BLANC singled up the middle. BELTRAN grounded out to
3b, SAC, bunt; BLANC advanced to second. FERGUSON struck out swinging. KUROCZKO
grounded out to 2b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 3rd - LAW doubled to left center. LAW advanced to
third on a wild pitch. MCNAUGHTON grounded out to 3b, RBI; LAW scored. VARGAS
flied out to cf. RELF to cf for BLANC. WALTON grounded out to ss. 1 run, 1
hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 3rd - SHIMADA flied out to rf. GUYMON grounded out to 3b.
SHRINER singled to shortstop, advanced to second on a throwing error by ss.
HENNIS struck out looking. 0 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 4th - KO singled up the middle. PARKER grounded into
double play 2b to ss to 1b; KO out on the play. CLUFF flied out to lf. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 4th - JONES grounded out to ss. RELF flied out to rf.
BELTRAN grounded out to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 5th - RELF flied out to cf. NACAPOY grounded out to
p. LAW singled to third base. LAW out at second c to 2b, caught stealing. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 5th - FERGUSON grounded out to 2b. KUROCZKO fouled out to
3b. SHIMADA grounded out to 3b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 6th - MCNAUGHTON fouled out to 1b. VARGAS hit by
pitch. WALTON flied out to cf. KO flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors,
1 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 6th - GUYMON grounded out to 2b. SHRINER grounded out to
3b. HENNIS singled up the middle. JONES fouled out to 2b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 7th - PARKER homered to left field, RBI. CLUFF
struck out swinging. RELF popped up to p. NACAPOY walked. LAW singled to center
field; NACAPOY advanced to second. ANDERSEN to p for JAMES. MCNAUGHTON doubled
down the lf line, 2 RBI; LAW scored; NACAPOY scored. VARGAS homered down the lf
line, 2 RBI; MCNAUGHTON scored. WALTON singled to center field. KO singled to
left field; WALTON advanced to second. PARKER flied out to lf. 5 runs, 6
hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 7th - RELF grounded out to 2b. BELTRAN grounded out to 2b.
FERGUSON doubled to left center. KUROCZKO flied out to cf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 8th - WOLFGRAMM to p for ANDERSEN. CLUFF singled
through the left side. CLUFF stole second. RELF grounded out to 2b; CLUFF
advanced to third. NACAPOY struck out swinging. LAW singled to center field,
RBI; CLUFF scored. MCNAUGHTON struck out swinging. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors,
1 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 8th - SHIMADA singled up the middle. GUYMON struck out
swinging. SHRINER reached on an error by 2b; SHIMADA advanced to third. HENNIS
singled up the middle, RBI; SHRINER advanced to second; SHIMADA scored,
unearned. JONES flied out to rf. RELF singled to right field, RBI; HENNIS
advanced to third; SHRINER scored, unearned. BELTRAN grounded out to 2b. 2
runs, 3 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 9th - VARGAS singled to shortstop. WALTON walked;
VARGAS advanced to second. KO grounded out to p, SAC, bunt; WALTON advanced to
second; VARGAS advanced to third. PARKER intentionally walked. CLUFF singled to
center field, 2 RBI; PARKER advanced to second; WALTON scored; VARGAS scored.
RELF tripled to center field, 2 RBI; CLUFF scored; PARKER scored. RELF scored
on a wild pitch. NACAPOY struck out looking. LAW singled to left field.
MCNAUGHTON reached on an error by 1b; LAW advanced to second. VARGAS singled to
center field, RBI; MCNAUGHTON advanced to second; LAW scored, unearned. WALTON
singled to shortstop; VARGAS advanced to second; MCNAUGHTON advanced to third.
KO singled to left field, RBI; WALTON advanced to second; VARGAS advanced to
third; MCNAUGHTON scored, unearned. GUYMON to c. SHRINER to p. / to dh for
WOLFGRAMM. BILLS pinch ran for KO. LEACH pinch hit for PARKER. LEACH singled up
the middle, RBI; BILLS advanced to second; WALTON advanced to third; VARGAS
scored, unearned. BOWEN pinch hit for CLUFF. BOWEN struck out swinging. 8
runs, 8 hits, 1 error, 3 LOB.
Univ. of Utah 9th - BILLS to 1b. SLOAN to 3b for LEACH. BOWEN to rf.
HERMOSILLO to 2b for LAW. MILLER to p for TORGERSON. FERGUSON popped up to p.
WALKER pinch hit for KUROCZKO. WALKER grounded out to ss. SHIMADA grounded out
to 1b unassisted. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

A rivalry, seedings and the Deseret First Duel Trophy are all on the line this week as BYU's baseball team closes its regular season at the University of Utah.

The three-game series starts on Thursday and Friday at 6 p.m., followed by the finale at 1 p.m. on Saturday. All of the games are at Franklin Covey Field.

BYU brings a 20-33 overall record and an 8-13 Mountain West Conference record to match Utah's 9-12 league mark. But first the Utes host Southern Utah at Ute Field on Tuesday to enhance their 21-24 overall record. The Cougars, who are tied with UNLV for sixth place, trail Utah by one game in the MWC standings. UNLV plays a three-game series this weekend at the Air Force Academy.

BYU will match southpaw Jake Wortham (4-4, 6.75) to face Utah's Stephen Fife (6-4, 3.29) on the mound in Thursday's opener. On Friday BYU will counter with sophomore righthander Blake Torgerson (5-4, 7.05) against the U's Brian Budrow 5-5, 3.68). And on Saturday the Cougar starting pitcher will be junior Jordan Muir (2-6, 6.26) against John James (3-6, 5.90).

Also at stake in rivalry is the first annual Deseret First Duel Trophy. BYU needs to win one of the three baseball games to claim the overall trophy, but the Utes could claim it with a sweep. Utah could also win the Deseret First Duel baseball trophy by winning two of this weekend's games or BYU could also win the baseball trophy outright with a three-game sweep or off total runs if the two teams split the four-game series. BYU leads the current standings with 31 points accrued through victories in football, men's basketball, women's volleyball, men's and women's swimming and softball. Utah's 28.5 points thus far have come through wins between the two schools in Women's Soccer, Women's Basketball, Women's Gymnastics, Men's Baseball, Men's Tennis, Softball and Women's Tennis.

Another twist for the rivalry is older brother Brandon Relf playing second base for BYU, while Tyler Relf is an infielder for the Utes. Brandon, who returned from a Church mission to South Africa last year, scored a run in April's contest between the brothers from Alta High, while Tyler went 0-for-5.

"We always want to play well," said BYU Coach Vance Law. "We need to go up to Utah and take care of business and gain some momentum to go into the tournament."

The Cougars lead the series, 206-90-1, but Utah claimed a 9-7 non-conference win in Provo early last month. The rivalry first started on May 18, 1895 when the two team played the first ever intercollegiate game in Utah, ending in a 0-0 tie and a bench-clearing brawl.

All of the BYU-Utah games will be broadcast live locally over KSRR Radio (1400 AM).

For more information, please see the multi-page PDF at the top of this page.

Deseret First Duel
Final Standings
BYU                   34
Utah                  30
                      BYU      Utah
Run differential:     38       26
BYU Points Thus Far
Football              10
Men's Basketball      10
Women's Volleyball     6
Men's Swimming         1
Women's Swimming       1
Softball               3
Baseball               3
Utah Points Thus Far
Women's Soccer          6
Women's Basketball     10
Women's Gymnastics      6
Men's Baseball          3
Men's Tennis            1
Softball                3
Women's Tennis          1