PROVO, Utah — BYU softball heads to Salt Lake City for a three-game series at Utah this week in the second to last week of Big 12 play.
The Cougars (17-28, 6-12 Big 12) and Utes will kick off their series on Thursday, Apr. 23 at 5 p.m. MT.
| BYU @ Utah | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game | Date | Time | Stream | Live Stats |
| Game 1 | Thursday, Apr. 23 | 5 p.m. MT | ESPN+ | StatBroadcast |
| Game 2 | Friday, Apr. 24 | 5 p.m. MT | ESPN+ | StatBroadcast |
| Game 3 | Saturday, Apr. 25 | 5 p.m. MT | ESPN+ | StatBroadcast |
BYU picked up a 12-3 win against Weber State in five innings on Tuesday, backed by Hailey Shuler's second two-home run game in the last week and a career-high five RBI.
The Cougars jumped on the Wildcats with six runs in the first inning, the second time that BYU scored six in a single inning this season, also doing so in game three against Houston.
Maddie Udall-Woolley went 2-4 with a run and an RBI in the contest, extending her team-leading hit streak to 10 games, which also ties her career-long streak. The first baseman has reached base in 13-straight games as well, three games shy of tying her career-long streak of 16.
No BYU batters have been better than Lexie Bennett .(500) and Udall-Woolley (.450) in the month of April, who have combined for 32 of the team's 111 hits (28.8%), 18 of its 85 runs scored (21.2%) and 12 of its 80 RBI (15%) over the last 12 games.
On the season, the Cougars are led by Danica Acosta (.342), Hailey Shuler (.336), Lily Owens (.323) and Udall-Woolley (.313) offensively, with 10 home runs apiece coming from Owens and Ilove'a Brittingham. Shuler is second on the team with eight homers, while Udall-Woolley has six.
In the circle, BYU's pitching staff features Gianna Mares, Hailey Shuler and Jada Villegas, who've all made around 30 appearances on the year. Mares has a team-high 105 strikeouts, with Shuler and Villegas posting 43 and 33, respectively.
On a national scale, the Cougars rank No. 27 in total double plays (21), No. 32 in double plays per game (0.47) and No. 38 in sacrifice flies (18).
Individually, Owens' five sacrifice flies rank 30th nationally, while Villegas' three saves are good for 36th in the country and second in the Big 12. Brittingham's eight runners caught stealing also rank second in the league.
BYU dropped its three-game series to Iowa State last week, 2-1. The Cougars beat the Cyclones in game two on a walk-off Udall-Woolley home run, but fell in the opener and finale, 14-10 and 9-6.
Dropping into the 10-spot in the Big 12 standings with two weeks to go, BYU looks for some movement in the league in its first conference series against the Utes in Salt Lake City since 2009.
Utah (30-17-1, 6-11-1 Big 12)
- The Utes dropped their series at Baylor last weekend, 2-1.
- Utah is 7-6 at home this season.
- BYU leads the all-time series between the two teams, 38-23, and is 14-13 against the Utes in SLC.
- The Cougars swept Utah in last season's series, walking off the first two games before a run-rule victory in game three.
- BYU's last win in Salt Lake came in 2018, a 5-2 decision on April 19. The Cougars dropped their next contest at Dumke Stadium, 3-1 in 2024, the two team's last meeting before both became members of the Big 12.
On Deck
BYU will host No. 24 Arizona State in a senior weekend and final regular season Big 12 series next week, beginning on Thursday, Apr. 30 at 6 p.m. MT.