The Seattle University saw a strong pitching performance from BYU starter Desmond Poulson, and the Cougars gave him enough run support for a 4-1 victory over the Redhawks Friday night at Cheney Stadium.
BYU (17-12) struck first in the second inning when Jaycob Brugman drew a leadoff walk, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, and scored on a double to left field by Austin Hall. In the third inning, Stephen Wells singled and Wes Guenther doubled, putting runners on second and third with one out. Wells scored on a groundout from Brock Whitney, and Guenther raced home on a passed ball to give the Cougars a 3-0 lead.
In the sixth inning, back-to-back doubles by Hall and Kelton Caldwell increased BYU's lead to 4-0. Although Caldwell was cut down at home on a bunt single from Adam Law, Law's hit was the fourth straight given up by Seattle U starter Seafth Howe (Seattle, Wash.), ending his outing after 5 2/3 innings.
Kyle Doyle (Covington, Wash.) and Eric Yardley (Richland, Wash.) kept the Redhawks in the game, pitching 3 1/3 innings combined of hitless relief. However, Poulson kept the Seattle U offense at bay, scattering five hits and three walks over 7 2/3 innings while striking out five Redhawk batters.
In the bottom of the ninth, Nate Roberts (Silverdale, Wash.) led off with a single to left field and was able to advance to third base after the throw back to the infield from Christian Mua sailed into the BYU dugout. Roberts came on to score on a wild pitch thrown by Cougar reliever Mason Marshall, but Marshall would settle down, notch two strikeouts, and induce a groundout to end the game.
Roberts finished the game 2-for-4 with the lone Redhawk run, while Nick Latta (Tacoma, Wash.), starting at third base for the first time this season, went 2-for-3 with a walk. For the Cougars, Hall was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, while Guenther also notched a multiple-hit game with a 2-for-5 effort.
Seattle University (15-15) will look to salvage one game of the weekend series against BYU Saturday, April 14, starting at 12 noon at Bannerwood Stadium in Bellevue. Dan Giuliani will broadcast the game live on GoSeattleU.com.