Utah Tech defeated Fresno State 8-7 on March 20 after Finnegan Stewart hit a walk-off, two-run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning at Bruce Hurst Field.
The victory allowed the Trailblazers to sweep their two-game home series and improve their season record to 15-8. Fresno State, meanwhile, suffered its tenth consecutive loss and dropped to 7-14 overall.
Both teams scored in the first inning before Utah Tech took a three-run lead in the third. Ryan Kroepel broke a tie with an RBI double, followed by Kace Naone reaching base on an error that brought in another run. Ty Johnsen added an RBI flyout for a 4-1 advantage. Fresno State responded with Marcus Nolen’s two-run homer in the fourth, narrowing the gap to one run.
Fresno State rallied for three runs in the eighth inning, including a two-RBI single from Ethan Payne that put them ahead 6-4. Utah Tech answered with two runs of their own to tie it at six. Kyle McDaniel contributed an RBI double and later scored on a wild pitch. Despite loading the bases with no outs, reliever Will Page-Allen struck out three straight batters to end the threat.
In extra innings, Zach Plasschaert gave Fresno State a brief lead with a solo home run in the top of the tenth. In Utah Tech’s half of the inning, McDaniel walked before Stewart hit his game-winning homer off Page-Allen.
McDaniel finished with three hits for his second straight game and went 6-for-11 during the series. Kroepel and Johnsen each had two hits as Utah Tech collected ten total hits. Jackson Price started for Utah Tech and struck out five over more than five innings. Brock Roundy pitched two innings of relief, while Talan Kelly earned his fourth win after pitching nearly three innings at the end.
Utah Tech will begin a six-game road trip next, starting with a two-game series against UNLV this weekend at Earl E. Wilson Stadium in Las Vegas.
