After playing its first 24 games away from home, the Utah softball team opens its home schedule at Dumke Family Softball Stadium against BYU on Tuesday afternoon.
“It’s real tiring to play 24 straight games on the road — I don’t think anyone can understand that until they have lived it,” said head coach Amy Hogue . “I’m thankful that we’re home, and I’m thankful that it’s Spring Break so that not only are [the players] home but they also don’t have school to worry about this week.”
The in-state rival Cougars come into Salt Lake City with a 14-10 record. In its last tournament, BYU went 2-2, losing two games to No. 13 Oklahoma but beating Maryland and Saint Louis.
The Cougars are batting .291 as a team, led by junior Ashley Thompson and freshman Libby Sugg. Thompson is batting .323 with 19 runs, six doubles, three home runs and 15 RBIs. Meanwhile, Sugg is excelling in her debut year, batting .320 with 15 runs, three doubles, a triple, 11 home runs and 30 RBIs. Sugg is fifth in the NCAA in home runs per game and tied for 17th in total RBIs.
On the defensive side of the ball, BYU is struggling. The Cougars have only used three pitchers so far this year, for an average ERA of 4.69. BYU heavily utilizes junior pitcher McKenna Bull, starting her 17 times in its 24 total games. Bull is 10-7 with an ERA of 3.85. She has pitched 12 complete games this year, three of them shutouts. On average, the Weber High graduate gives up 7.6 hits and 3.9 runs per seven innings.
Cougar manager Gordon Eakin also taps Olivia Sanchez for the circle often. Sanchez is 3-3 with a 4.71 ERA in 11 appearances this season.
In a game between two schools separated by just 49 miles with a rivalry stretching back 48 games, one would think there would be a lot of emotion and bad blood between the schools. But Hogue views it as just another game in preparation for Pac-12 play.
“I don’t think a lot of the kids consider [BYU] a big rival anymore,” Hogue said. “We don’t even talk about it. It’s more important for us to get on a roll going into Pac-12 play, and that’s what we focus on the most.”
Utah comes into the Holy War on a three-game winning streak, riding a wave of defensive momentum. In their last three games, the Utes have only given up three runs, scoring 14 during that same span.
Katie Donovan, Miranda Viramontes and Hailey Hilburn have led Utah, as they have all season, during their win streak. Against Florida Gulf Coast, Donovan, Viramontes and Hilburn, along with Sammy Cordova, shutout the Eagles. Hilburn threw four innings, earning the win and improving her record to 4-1.
In the first game against Purdue, Donovan threw a complete game, striking out eight, tying her career-high for strikeouts in a game. In the second game against the Boilermakers, Viramontes set her personal record for most strikeouts in a game, striking out six batters.
Hogue said the Ute offense has to capitalize on opportunities and get momentum going into Pac-12 play and, of course, getting a win over BYU.
“I still feel like we’re leaving too much on the table when it comes to our offense. Our offense is still too slow, so that’s our main focus going into this week,” Hogue said. “We still don’t have a lot of momentum on offense, and we need to get that momentum in the next couple of days with the in-state teams going into the start of Pac-12 [play].”
First pitch between the Utes and Cougars is at 4 p.m. MT.
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