SAN DIEGO -- Right-hander Taylor Cole of Las Vegas helped eliminate UNLV from the Mountain West Conference Baseball Tournament with a 5-1 BYU victory on Wednesday.

The sophomore from Las Vegas struck out five Rebels and walked none through 7.2 innings and 103 pitches to even his record at 5-5 as the Cougars improved to 30-26. BYU remained alive to advance to Thursday’s 11 a.m. PT game on a hopeful doubleheader day.

“Taylor’s (Cole) fastball got better as the game went on,” said BYU coach Vance Law. “There were a couple of key plays, Dillon Robinson dove left and turned a double play along with the ball Wells (Stephen) ran down to keep the game tight.”

Robinson went to his knees and recovered to turn 543 double play in fourth when the score was tied 1-1. Wells made cartwheel diving catch to end sixth to protect a slim 2-1 BYU lead. In the sixth it looked like a three-up-down inning like the first and third, but the ball Cole caught in webbing of his glove got stuck and he was saved by Wells’ grab.

There were other stellar Cougar plays. On defense, Ryan Bernal made a leaping catch on the run to end the first inning. UNLV scored on a bases-loaded single in the second, but Jaycob Brugman threw out a gambling Casey Sato at home when Wes Guenther tagged off a high throw and ended the inning.

“I’ve been pleased with our defense this year which has been reasonably solid,” said Law. “Wes (Guenther) was just outstanding behind the plate; he blocks the ball very well. We squandered a bases loaded opportunity (in the fourth), but I’m pleased we started executing better later in the game.”

BYU tied the game one-all on Wells’ sac-fly after Dane Nielsen continued clutch tournament play with a one-out single in the third that pushed Gunther to third base. Brugman led-off with a leftfield wall- caroming double in fourth to give BYU a 2-1 lead it never lost. Alex Wolfe had the game-winning RBI single when he drove in Brugman.

UNLV Rebels vs Brigham Young Univ.
May 25, 2011 at San Diego, Calif. (Tony Gwynn Stadium)
UNLV Rebels 1 (33-25)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
KIRK, T. cf..............  4  0  0  0   0  1  4  0   0
DYSINGER, S. 2b..........  4  0  2  0   0  0  0  0   0
COOK, T. 1b..............  4  0  1  0   0  0  3  0   1
BAYARDI, B. dh...........  2  0  1  0   1  0  0  0   1
FEINER, T. 3b............  4  0  0  0   0  1  1  0   0
SATO, C. lf..............  3  1  0  0   0  1  6  0   0
 ROUNDY, R. ph...........  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
THOMAS, C. rf............  3  0  3  0   0  0  2  0   0
PULLIN, R. c.............  1  0  0  0   0  1  6  0   0
 SCOTT, R. ph............  1  0  0  0   0  1  1  0   1
JIMENEZ, R. ss...........  3  0  1  1   0  0  1  0   0
ROBINSON, J. p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  2   0
 GARCIA, J. p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 HARTMAN, Z. p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 30  1  8  1   1  5 24  2   5
Brigham Young Univ. 5 (30-26)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
WELLS, Stephen cf........  3  1  1  1   0  1  3  0   0
LAW, Andrew ss...........  4  0  2  1   0  0  1  4   1
BRUGMAN, Jaycob rf.......  3  1  1  1   0  1  3  1   0
BERNAL, Ryan lf..........  3  0  0  0   1  1  1  0   2
WOLFE, Alex dh...........  4  1  2  1   0  0  0  0   0
HALL, Austin 1b..........  4  0  1  0   0  2  9  0   0
GUENTHER, Wes c..........  4  1  2  1   0  1  6  3   0
ROBINSON, Dillon 3b......  4  0  0  0   0  1  0  2   0
NIELSEN, Dane 2b.........  3  1  1  0   1  0  4  3   4
COLE, Taylor p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 MILLER, Jared p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 32  5 10  5   2  7 27 14   7
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
UNLV Rebels......... 010 000 000 -  1  8  0
Brigham Young Univ.. 001 100 21X -  5 10  0
-------------------------------------------
DP - BYU 2. LOB - UNLV 5; BYU 7. 2B - LAW; BRUGMAN; WOLFE. HBP - BAYARDI,
B.; PULLIN, R.. SF - WELLS; BRUGMAN. SB - GUENTHER; NIELSEN. CS - DYSINGER,
S.; THOMAS, C..
UNLV Rebels            IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
ROBINSON, J.........  6.1  6  3  3  2  6 24 27
GARCIA, J...........  0.2  3  2  2  0  0  4  5
HARTMAN, Z..........  1.0  1  0  0  0  1  4  4
Brigham Young Univ.    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
COLE, Taylor........  7.2  8  1  1  0  5 27 29
MILLER, Jared.......  1.1  0  0  0  1  0  3  4
Win - COLE (5-5).  Loss - ROBINSON, J. (5-7).  Save - MILLER (2).
HBP - by COLE (PULLIN, R.); by COLE (BAYARDI, B.). PB - PULLIN, R..
Umpires - HP: Ray Belfiore  1B: Rick Scarbery  2B: Bill Van Raaphorst  3B: Dale
Luker  Start: 11:04 am   Time: 2:06   Attendance: 241
Weather: Clear, sunny, 67, wind calm
Game notes:
Game 3 of the 2011 Mountain West Conference Tournament
UNLV Rebels starters: 16/cf KIRK, T.; 17/2b DYSINGER, S.; 33/1b COOK, T.; 24/dh
BAYARDI, B.; 20/3b FEINER, T.; 32/lf SATO, C.; 40/rf THOMAS, C.; 35/c PULLIN,
R.; 5/ss JIMENEZ, R.; 26/p ROBINSON, J.;
Brigham Young Univ. starters: 5/cf WELLS; 6/ss LAW; 4/rf BRUGMAN; 10/lf BERNAL;
18/dh WOLFE; 26/1b HALL; 9/c GUENTHER; 3/3b ROBINSON; 16/2b NIELSEN; 8/p COLE;
UNLV Rebels 1st - KIRK, T. grounded out to 3b. DYSINGER, S. singled to
left field. DYSINGER, S. out at second c to ss, caught stealing. COOK, T. flied
out to lf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 1st - WELLS fouled out to 3b. LAW grounded out to 1b
unassisted. BRUGMAN struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0
LOB.
UNLV Rebels 2nd - BAYARDI, B. singled to center field. FEINER, T. struck
out swinging. SATO, C. reached on a fielder's choice; BAYARDI, B. out at second
ss to 2b. THOMAS, C. singled through the left side; SATO, C. advanced to
second. PULLIN, R. hit by pitch; THOMAS, C. advanced to second; SATO, C.
advanced to third. JIMENEZ, R. singled to right field, RBI; PULLIN, R. advanced
to second; THOMAS, C. advanced to third, out at home rf to c; SATO, C. scored.
1 run, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 2nd - BERNAL struck out swinging. WOLFE flied out to
lf. HALL struck out looking. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
UNLV Rebels 3rd - KIRK, T. grounded out to p. DYSINGER, S. grounded out
to 2b. COOK, T. flied out to rf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 3rd - GUENTHER singled to left field. ROBINSON
struck out swinging. NIELSEN singled through the left side; GUENTHER advanced
to third. WELLS flied out to cf, SF, RBI; GUENTHER scored. NIELSEN stole
second. LAW grounded out to p. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
UNLV Rebels 4th - BAYARDI, B. hit by pitch. FEINER, T. grounded into
double play 3b to 2b to 1b; BAYARDI, B. out on the play. SATO, C. grounded out
to c, bunt. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 4th - BRUGMAN doubled to left field. BRUGMAN
advanced to third on a passed ball. BERNAL walked. WOLFE singled to center
field, RBI; BERNAL advanced to second; BRUGMAN scored. HALL singled to third
base, bunt; WOLFE advanced to second; BERNAL advanced to third. GUENTHER struck
out swinging. ROBINSON popped up to ss. NIELSEN flied out to rf. 1 run, 3
hits, 0 errors, 3 LOB.
UNLV Rebels 5th - THOMAS, C. singled to third base, bunt. THOMAS, C. out
at second c to 2b, caught stealing. PULLIN, R. struck out swinging. JIMENEZ, R.
grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 5th - WELLS struck out looking. LAW doubled to right
center. BRUGMAN fouled out to lf. BERNAL grounded out to p. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
UNLV Rebels 6th - KIRK, T. struck out looking. DYSINGER, S. flied out to
rf. COOK, T. singled to pitcher. BAYARDI, B. flied out to cf. 0 runs, 1 hit,
0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 6th - WOLFE flied out to rf. HALL flied out to cf.
GUENTHER flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
UNLV Rebels 7th - FEINER, T. flied out to cf. SATO, C. struck out
looking. THOMAS, C. singled through the left side. SCOTT, R. pinch hit for
PULLIN, R.. SCOTT, R. struck out swinging. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1
LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 7th - SCOTT, R. to c. ROBINSON flied out to lf.
NIELSEN walked. GARCIA, J. to p for ROBINSON, J.. WELLS singled through the
right side; NIELSEN advanced to third. LAW singled up the middle, RBI, advanced
to second on the throw; WELLS advanced to third; NIELSEN scored. BRUGMAN flied
out to lf, SF, RBI; WELLS scored. BERNAL flied out to lf. 2 runs, 2 hits, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
UNLV Rebels 8th - JIMENEZ, R. flied out to cf. KIRK, T. flied out to rf.
DYSINGER, S. singled to left field. MILLER to p for COLE. COOK, T. grounded out
to 1b unassisted. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Brigham Young Univ. 8th - WOLFE doubled to right center. HARTMAN, Z. to
p for GARCIA, J.. HALL struck out swinging. GUENTHER singled to right field,
RBI; WOLFE scored. GUENTHER stole second. ROBINSON flied out to cf; GUENTHER
advanced to third. NIELSEN flied out to lf. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1
LOB.
UNLV Rebels 9th - BAYARDI, B. walked. FEINER, T. grounded into double
play ss to 2b to 1b; BAYARDI, B. out on the play. ROUNDY, R. pinch hit for
SATO, C.. ROUNDY, R. grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0
LOB.

PROVO, Utah -- The BYU baseball team [29-25, 11-12] opens play at the Mountain West Conference Tournament Tuesday against New Mexico [16-39, 10-14) at Tony Gwynn Stadium in San Diego, California.

In conjunction with the start of the tournament, Jaycob Brugman and Matthew Neil received 2011 All-MWC honors. Brugman was named a first-team outfielder and freshman of the year while Neil was one of four starting pitchers named to the second team.

Brugman led the Cougars in hitting with a .339 batting average in 2011, while adding nine home runs, 18 doubles and 47 RBI.

After posting a 6-4 recording with a 2.22 ERA during the regular season, Neil is slated to start against the No. 6 seeded Lobos, with opening pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. PT.

"We haven't been hitting balls on the button the way we are capable of doing," said BYU coach Vance Law. "New Mexico is a good team that competes well. I'm guessing they will throw Jaramillo who was effective against us. We are looking forward to playing them."

The winner of Tuesday's game will move on to play Utah Wednesday at 3 p.m. PT. The loser will play the loser of the San Diego State, UNLV game Wednesday at 11 a.m. PT.

TWITTER - Follow the Cougars on Twitter by clicking HERE or visiting twitter.com/byuathletics

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2011 All-Mountain West Baseball Team
First Team
Catcher            Garrett Custons      Air Force    So.   Sarasota, Fla.
First Base         C.J. Cron#           Utah         Jr.   Phoenix, Ariz.
Second Base        Jerome Pena#         TCU          Sr.   Cave Creek, Ariz.
Second Base        Michael Beltran      Utah         Sr.   Lakewood, Calif.
Shortstop          Taylor Featherston!# TCU          Jr.   Katy, Texas
Third Base         Jantzen Witte        TCU          So.   Arlington, Texas
Outfielder         Jaycob Brugman       BYU          Fr.   Phoenix, Ariz.
Outfielder         Jason Coats#         TCU          Jr.   Plano, Texas
Outfielder         Shaun Cooper         Utah         Jr.   Tuscon, Ariz.
DH/Utility         Brandon Bayardi      UNLV         So.   Phoenix, Ariz.
Pitcher            Kyle Winkler#        TCU          Jr.   Sugar Land, Texas
Pitcher            Tanner Peters#       UNLV         Jr.   Simi Valley, Calif.
Pitcher            Rick Anton#          Utah         Sr.   Prescott, Ariz.
Relief Pitcher     Tyler Wagner         Utah         So.   Las Vegas, Nev.
Second Team
Catcher            Josh Elander         TCU          So.   Round Rock, Texas
First Base         Trent Cook           UNLV         Jr.   Centerville, Utah
Shortstop          James Brooks         Utah         Jr.   Melbourne, Australia
Third Base         Quay Grant           New Mexico   Jr.   Burkburnett, Texas
Third Base         Trey Nielsen         Utah         Fr.   Salt Lake City, Utah
Outfielder         Cody Smith           SDSU         Fr.   San Diego, Calif.
Outfielder         Chris Wilson         SDSU         Jr.   San Diego, Calif.
Outfielder         Brance Rivera#       TCU          Jr.   Muscatine, Iowa
Outfielder         Trevor Kirk          UNLV         Jr.   Las Vegas, Nev.
DH/Utility         Brandon Meredith!#   SDSU         Jr.   Chula Vista, Calif.
Pitcher            Sean Carley          Air Force    So.   Melbourne, Fla.
Pitcher            Matthew Neil         BYU          Sr.   Mesa, Ariz.
Pitcher            Cole Swanson         SDSU         Fr.   San Diego, Calif.
Pitcher            Steven Maxwell#      TCU          Sr.   The Woodlands, Texas
Relief Pitcher     Trent Appleby!       TCU          Sr.   McKinney, Texas
Relief Pitcher     Stefan Crichton      TCU          Fr.   Katy, Texas
#2010 All-MW selection 
!2009 All-MW selection
Player of the Year -   C.J. Cron, Utah
Pitcher of the Year -  Tanner Peters, UNLV
Freshman of the Year - Jaycob Brugman, BYU
Coach of the Year -    Jim Schlossnagle, TCU