BYU softball was eliminated in the NCAA regional stage of the tournament for the seventh-consecutive season.
BYU softball staved off elimination last night with a run-rule win over Fordham but couldn’t overcome Utah on Saturday.
The Cougars lost 14-0 to the Utes in six innings in the final game of the Salt Lake City regional.
Utah jumped ahead 2-0 after the first inning after a wild pitch by McKenna Bull scored one run and a sacrifice fly scored the second.
In the second, Kelly Martinez hit a solo home run to left field to put Utah up 3-0 and an RBI double from Anissa Urtez made it 4-0.
The Cougars looked tired after playing two games yesterday. In the first game, BYU dropped a tough winners’ bracket game to Utah, 3-2. The second game was an elimination game against Fordham; BYU made quick work of the Rams, 12-1 in five innings.
Bull was pulled after 2.1 innings on Saturday. She gave up four hits and four earned runs in her final outing for BYU.
Aris Paulson entered the game in the top of the third to pitch and walked in a run after loading the bases.
After, shortstop Libby Sugg made up for an error in the first by getting Paulson out of the jam.
The onslaught continued in the fourth, as Utah added another run on a sacrifice bunt to make it 6-0.
In the bottom half, BYU could not find an answer.
After a lead-off single by Sugg, Ashley Thompson grounded into a fielder’s choice and Alexa Strid grounded into a double play.
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The Cougars managed just six singles and had two errors while Utah had 17 hits and no errors.
Utah tacked on eight more runs in the sixth to make it 14-0. BYU couldn’t cut into the lead in the bottom half of the inning, activating the mercy rule.
Another NCAA regional exit continues BYU’s tournament woes. The last time BYU advanced to the Super Regionals was in 2010.