Utes Nipped by Oklahoma State in Middle Game 5-4

Saturday, March 22

Salt Lake City, Utah

2 p.m.

University of Utah

12-9, 1-4

Oklahoma State

11-9, 1-2

Oklahoma State

Utah

Photo by: Sophia Kuder/Utah Athletics

Utes Nipped by Oklahoma State in Middle Game 5-4

3/22/2025 6:08 PM | Baseball

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Jackson was a triple short of the cycle

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah shortstop Core Jackson needed just a triple for the cycle and the Utes put the tying run on base in the ninth inning, but the team fell just short to Oklahoma State 5-4 on Saturday at Smith's Ballpark.

Jackson finished 3-for-5 out of the two-hole with two RBIs and a solo homer; it was his third long ball of the season. In addition to Jackson, Austen Roellig and Jack Kleveno doubled while Kaden Carpenter slapped a triple, as Utah (12-9, 1-4 Big 12) combined for five extra-base hits in the game.

Jake Long had a 2-for-4 day with an RBI single. Carpenter's triple extended his hitting streak to seven games while Jackson pushed his on-base streak to 16 straight contests.

Merit Jones (2-2) received the loss for Utah in a six-inning start with three strikeouts. He kept his poise after a leadoff double to begin the game, allowing just one hit over the next three innings. Two-way player Demitri Diamant tossed the final three innings with just a hit and walk allowed to go with four strikeouts.

After the Cowboys scratched across one run in the opening inning, Utah washed it out with a tally of its own. Jackson turned on the wheels for an early double, putting Matt Flaharty on third base after he led off the frame with a walk. Tyler Quinn followed with a tapper in front of the mound that allowed Flaharty to score on a fielder's choice, evening the score at one.

Utah pulled in front in the third, when Jackson turned on the 0-1 pitch and landed it on the berm beyond right-center field. The home run put Utah ahead by a 2-1 score. Meanwhile, Jones kept Oklahoma State in check with 1-2-3 innings in both the second and fourth, plus working around a leadoff single in the third.

Oklahoma State would pull back in front with a four-run fifth inning capped by a three-run homer off the bat of Nolan Schubart, as the Cowboys took a 5-2 lead.

But the Utes would start to chip away in the sixth inning. Roellig laced a one-out double into right field and would score on an opposite-field single from Long. Utah had a chance to do more damage but Derek Smith was stranded at third base.

Diamant retired his first four batters faced—three by K—as he kept Utah within two runs down the home stretch of the ballgame. He was unfazed by a one-out single in the eighth and tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to get Utah back to the bats looking to equalize.

Kleveno went after the first pitch of the bottom of the ninth, bouncing it off the left field wall for a leadoff double. A pair of groundouts brought him home to get Utah back within a run. Quinn would reach on an infield single to put the tying run on base, but another grounder brought the game to an end.

Next Up
The rubber match of this three-game series awaits Utah and Oklahoma State on Sunday at 1 p.m. MT inside Smith's Ballpark.

Every Sunday at Smith's Ballpark this season will be part of the Sunday Select Series with a baseball card giveaway (tomorrow's cards are Kaden Carpenter, Demitri Diamant and Colter McAnelly).

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Season and single-game tickets are on sale for the entirety of Utah's 2025 home schedule at Smith's Ballpark. Priced at $30, season tickets offer fans the best bargain breaking down to less than $2 per game, while single-game tickets are available at $10 for adults and $5 for youth.

Fans can contact the Utah Athletics Ticket Office via phone with questions at (801) 581-8849.

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