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Courtesy UVU Athletics<\/p>\n
Utah Valley’s Aaron Rice throws a pitch against Cal State Bakersfield during a Western Athletic Conference baseball game in Bakersfield, Calif., on Thursday, April 2, 2026.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. \u2013\u00a0Utah Valley defeated Cal State Bakersfield 14-4 on Thursday night in the series opener at Hardt Field. <\/p>\n
UVU (13-15) had nine different hitters drive in runs to lead the offensive effort against CSUB (12-17).\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chipper Beck finished 3 for 5 with three runs scored, and\u00a0Jimmy De Anda\u00a0and\u00a0Jayden Smith\u00a0each had two RBIs.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
The Wolverines scored five runs in the third inning to take a commanding lead after CSUB starting pitcher Alex Navarette had trouble finding the strike zone, walking\u00a0DJ Massey\u00a0and\u00a0Hunter Katschke\u00a0before hitting\u00a0Kaden Carpenter\u00a0for the second time in two at-bats. Utah Valley tallied a season-high 13 walks, with nine different players recording a free pass.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
The Wolverines took advantage of the bases-loaded situation, starting with a single by\u00a0Mason Strong\u00a0that drove in one run. Katschke then hustled home on a fielding error to give UVU a 2-0 lead. Beck singled to right field to extend the lead to 3-0 before Strong scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-0. Another fielding error allowed the fifth and final run of the inning to score, making it 5-0.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
Ray Hernandez\u00a0made his third start of the season and tossed three innings, scattering five hits and allowing one run. <\/p>\n
Katschke reached scoring position to start the fourth inning with a double, extending his hitting streak to 15 games. He has now driven in a run in 10 consecutive games. He later scored on an RBI single by\u00a0Brody Block.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
The Wolverines led 6-1 entering the top of the seventh inning and looked to pull away. De Anda walked to start the seventh and scored on a two-out single from Carpenter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aaron Rice\u00a0worked three innings, tying a season high for the Brillion, Wis., native, who also struck out a season-high four batters.\u00a0He gave way to freshman\u00a0Cohen Baack\u00a0as the Roadrunners rallied and cut the lead to 6-4. When\u00a0Bradley Gilbert\u00a0entered the game, he stranded the tying run at the plate on a groundout and went on to secure the save. The sophomore finished with 2 1\/3 innings pitched and four strikeouts in his seventh career appearance.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
The Wolverines did their biggest damage in the eighth, scoring three runs and totaling seven hits across the eighth and ninth innings. The rally began in the eighth when they loaded the bases after Beck doubled to right field and\u00a0Derek Houston\u00a0and\u00a0Cooper Brass\u00a0walked.\u00a0Smith\u00a0 drove in two runs with a double down the left-field line to make it 8-4 before De Anda\u2019s sacrifice fly extended the lead to 9-4. <\/p>\n
Utah Valley added four more runs in the ninth, starting with RBI singles by Houston and Brass to make it 13-4, and Katschke\u2019s bases-loaded walk made it 14-4.<\/p>\n