May 23, 2003

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - BYU and Utah met for the seventh time this season in today's MWC Tournament matchup at Isotopes Park, and the Cougars made it seven straight wins over the Utes with a 7-6 victory. BYU battles San Diego State tonight in an elimination game with the winner will face No. 1 seed UNLV in the championship tomorrow at 3 p.m.

Tyler Dabo (1-1) got the win for BYU and Ben Buck (1-3) took the loss for Utah. The Utes got on board quickly as Jared Pena opened up the 1st with a ground rule double and Ryan Khoury took Ken Gravley's first pitch over the left field fence for a quick 2-0 lead. But BYU struck back immediately with a run in the home frame, as Kainoa Obrey plated Ranger Wiens on a double off of the center field fence.

Neither team scored again until the 4th, when BYU plated a run to even the score at 2-2. Obrey reached base on an error and was later driven home on a long single by Brock Jacobsen. In the 6th, the Utes mounted another scoring run as Gravley surrendered two straight singles to Matt Ciaramella and Mike Westfall to open the inning. Eric Chevalier had an RBI single, to extend his hitting streak to 23-straight games, scoring Ciaramella for a 3-2 Utah lead. Cort Wilson followed with an RBI and extended the Utes' lead to 4-2.

The Cougars found some more offense in the 6th Brock Jacobsen reached on an error, stole second base then was driven home on Blair Lucas' single. Adam Wilkes followed with a stand up double that scored Jacobsen and Clayton Carson hit a pinch-hit RBI single to give BYU a 5-4 lead. Then, after Doug Jackson's sacrifice fly, Ryan Chambers ripped a two-out RBI single to right field that scored Carson for a 6-4 BYU lead after six innings. The BYU lead was short lived as Mike Basham singled in the 7th and Pena's home run to left field tied the score at 6-6. It was his 7th home run of the season. Buck got into trouble in the 8th, giving up a lead off double to Cougar pinch hitter Rob Itri. He hit Doug Jackson with a pitch then Chambers singled to load the bases. Utah reliever Brady Martinez was brought in for Buck, and he retired Wiens, but Wilkes scored from third base for BYU's final margin of victory.