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PROVO — Through 26 wins in a breakout 2016 season, BYU baseball coach Mike Littlewood has had plenty of big games.
But he won’t shy away from letting his players know one matters more: the annual showdown with the Cougars' Crimson rivals on the hill.
Big game, big win.
Brennon Lund went 3 for 6 with three runs scored, and Hayden Nielsen and Bronson Larsen each went 2 for 4 with two RBIs as the No. 22-ranked Cougars used a nine-run third inning en route to a 14-3 rout Tuesday evening at Larry H. Miller Park in Provo.
“We try to stay even-keeled a little bit; in baseball, if you get overemotional, the skill level goes down a bit,” Littlewood said. “But there was an undercurrent of some pretty positive emotions in there.
“You see guys in front hit, and it becomes contagious and builds confidence. There’s a little bit added (playing Utah). We come out every day, and just being Utah, we don’t understate the fact that it is a big game for us. We aren’t afraid to say this is a big game, maybe the biggest one on the schedule. We have to win this game. It was pretty emotional, but not too emotional.”
Colton Shaver belted a home run with two RBIs, and Eric Urry drove in three runs, including a two-run double, in the Cougars’ seven-hit third.
“We swing at strikes, and we take balls,” Littlewood said of his simplified hitters' approach. “You’ll see a lot of teams swinging in the dirt or at pitches they can’t handle, and our guys have a really good approach.
“The hitters command their own strike zone and hit pitches they can handle. I think overall, that’s it.”
BYU (26-5) moved to 2-0 on the season against the Utes, who fell 6-0 on March 15 in Provo. The two teams conclude the annual rivalry series, which BYU leads 242-112-2 all-time, May 17 at Smith’s Ballpark in Salt Lake City.
“Starting is starting, and I try not to look at it any different,” winning pitcher Hayden Rogers said. “We try to make every game the same, but with Utah, it’s in the back of our minds: We want to win. We go into it knowing that we need to win.”
Rogers took his fourth win of the season, giving up no hits with two strikeouts in three innings of work to move to 4-0 on the season.
“Everything was working for me,” the left-hander said. “I felt comfortable with all my pitches. I was just focused on keeping the ball down, keeping it in the zone and letting my defense work.”
After jumping out to a 2-0 lead, BYU opened the third inning with Tanner Chauncey’s RBI single that scored leadoff man Hayden Nielsen. After back-to-back hits from Eric Urry and Larsen drove in two runs apiece, Lund, Nielsen and Chauncey each added to the bounty as BYU batted around the inning.
“It takes a lot of pressure off you; you never expect to put up nine runs in an inning,” Littlewood said. “Our guys came out ready to play, and that was the bottom line.”
Utah pulled a pair back in the fourth inning as Cody Scaggari belted an RBI double and came in on Kellen Marruffo’s single in the next at-bat. But the Cougars added to the lead through Colton Shavers’ homer to right center in the sixth inning.
Utah (11-18) tried to strike again in the top of the seventh, but Ellis Kelly lined into a double-play to short to clear him and Max Schuman from the bases.
Relief pitcher Josh Tedeschi intentionally walked Shaver to load the bases in the seventh, then walked in back-to-back runs to put the Cougars up 11, 14-3. Lars Lofgren got the Utes out of the jam from the mound, but the damage was done.
UTAH — 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 — 3 1 5
BYU — 2 0 9 0 0 1 2 0 x — 14 2 8
Win: Rogers (4-0). Loss: Thomas (0-1)
2B: Scaggari, Schuman (Utah); Chauncey, Urry, Cluff (BYU). 3B: Nielsen (BYU). HR: Shaver (BYU).
Scaggari led the Utes with an RBI double, and Marruffo and Hunter Simmons each drove in a run apiece.
“It was 14-3, but it didn’t ever feel like 14-3 to me,” Littlewood said. “It felt like a four-run or a three-run game to me. Our bullpen wasn’t really sharp today, and they felt a hit away from being right back in the game.”
The Cougars open a three-game series at Saint Mary’s beginning Thursday, while the Utes open a 10-game home span Friday against UC Riverside.
The 2,937 fans at Miller Park were the third-most in the history of the venue.
“We leave on a positive note,” Littlewood said. “We appreciate it. It was awesome to see; I would think there was more than 3,000. Keep coming out; it was just awesome tonight.”
