University of Northern Colorado Athletics
University of Northern Colorado
11-28
University of Utah
12-26
Fisher homers, Heinze stays hot but Bears can't outlast Utes
5/9/2021 7:34:00 PM | Baseball
A night ago, it was the Utes who jumped on the top of the Bears to force UNC to play from behind all evening long. Sunday, Northern Colorado busted out to the early lead, showing they meant business in Ogden.
Back-to-back doubles from Shaydon Kubo and Garrett Fisher to kick off the contest handed the Bears to the 1-0 advantage.
Utah countered in the bottom half with three runs to leapfrog Northern Colorado, setting up what would be a roller-coaster ride of a finish at Lindquist Field.
Matt Burkart's ninth home run of the year cut the Ute's lead to one. And even though Utah pushed one run across in the third, the hot bats of UNC were ready to get work.
Two more doubles, including a two-RBI one from Ben McKay, brought the Bears all the way back to tie the game at four.
An inning later, it was Hayden Heinze's triple that sparked another scoring frame. Heinze, who did not record a hit in Saturday's affair, rebounded with a 3-4 effort, giving the Bears the lead when Kubo batted him in.
Meanwhile, Cooper Rusts' freshman campaign continues to impress. Against Power Five Utah, Rust went five full innings with three strikeouts, surrendering four runs.
Even when Utah seemed to creep away, scoring three runs across the sixth and seventh innings combined, Northern Colorado found a way to claw back.
In the eighth, it was the handiwork of freshman Garrett Fisher. His first home run of the season, a two-run bomb to left, tied the game for the third time at seven.
Things came undone at the seams in the bottom end of the eighth, though. Four runs on two hits put the Bears just out of reach as UNC couldn't mount a comeback in the ninth and Utah ran away with its second victory of the series, 11-7.
Game Notes
- Matt Burkart launched his ninth home run of the season.
- Garrett Fisher smashed his first career home run in the Blue and Gold.
- Hayden Heinze rebounded after a hitless day on Saturday to a 3-4 effort on Sunday with a triple and a run scored.
- As a team, Northern Colorado carded seven extra-base hits.
- Five UNC players recorded multiple hits in the contest.
What's Ahead
The Bears and Utes will go at it one more time on Monday. The getaway game is slated for noon MT.
To stay up to date on all things UNC baseball, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Facebook and Twitter.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Sox, Matthew (5-1)
L: Bergdahl, Austin (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Kubo, Shaydon 1 ; Fisher, Garrett 1 ; Leach, Sam 1 ; McKay, Ben 1
3B: Heinze, Hayden 1
HR: Fisher, Garrett 1 ; Burkart, Matt 1
RBI: Kubo, Shaydon 1 ; Fisher, Garrett 3 ; McKay, Ben 2 ; Burkart, Matt 1
SH: Leahy, Aiden 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kubo, Shaydon 2 ; Fisher, Garrett 2 ; Leach, Sam 1 ; Burkart, Matt 1 ; Heinze, Hayden 1
CS: Leach, Sam 1
HBP: Kubo, Shaydon 1 ; Tweedt, Blake 1
Batting:
2B: Richardson, Matt 2 ; Tom, Rykker 1 ; Rudy, Brock 1
HR: Rowan Jr., C 1 ; Tom, Rykker 1
RBI: McLaughlin, Jaylon 1 ; Richardson, Matt 2 ; Roberts, Kai 1 ; Rowan Jr., C 3 ; Clarkson, Trey 1 ; Tom, Rykker 2 ; Rudy, Brock 1
SH: Richardson, Matt 1
SF: Rowan Jr., C 2
Base Running:
RUNS: McLaughlin, Jaylon 2 ; Richardson, Matt 2 ; Roberts, Kai 1 ; Rowan Jr., C 2 ; Clarkson, Trey 1 ; Tom, Rykker 1 ; Kramer, Shea 1 ; Fernlund, Chase 1
SB: Richardson, Matt 1
CS: Roberts, Kai 1
HBP: Kramer, Shea 1
