BYU Beats Utah State, Falls to 11th-Ranked Stanford

ST. GEORGE -- Playing in the second day of the Red Desert Classic, the BYU softball team split games against Utah State and Stanford Saturday.

BYU recorded its lone victory in the tournament against in-state rival Utah State, posting a 3-2 win over the Aggies. The Cougars fell down, 2-0, but rallied in the fifth for three runs ignited by an Angie Christiansen leadoff double.

Maryon Dewitt went the distance for the Cougars to get the win, allowing just four hits and striking out nine. Dewitt evened her season record at 2-2. BYU is now 3-1 in one-run games.

Later in the day, the Cougars faced their second ranked opponent of the tournament, 11th-ranked Stanford, losing, 9-4. Stanford jumped out to an early lead in the first inning, capitalizing on two Cougar errors to put two on the board. The next inning, the Cardinal tacked on four more runs led by Jenni Shideler's second home run of the year to force starting pitcher Lindsay Jones out of the game.

In the third, the Cougars finally answered back with two runs, when Megan Johnson scored on a wild pitch and Mindy Hanson hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Lindsay Hodgen. However, Stanford was not to be outdone, as it responded with two more runs the next inning and an additional one in the fifth. BYU outfielder Brooke Cadiente hit a two-run shot just inside of fair territory to narrow the margin to 9-4 in the sixth, but it was not enough to come back for a win.

Jones took the loss for the Cougars, allowing six hits and six runs (two earned) in 1 2/3 innings of work. Tori Nyberg won for the Cardinal to remain undefeated this season. BYU ended the weekend