Jay has covered sports in Utah for more than 30 years and has been writing for the Deseret News since 2019.
One of the beauties of baseball is that you can go to dozens of games and see something you've never seen before in every single game.
That was certainly the case Thursday morning in a Big 12 baseball tournament quarterfinal game, as No. 4 seed Arizona eliminated No. 12 seed BYU 4-1 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
With two outs in the bottom of the first inning, Arizona's Mason White homered off the right field foul pole. The next hitter up, Adonys Guzman, homered off the left field foul pole.
That incredibly unique occurrence staked the Wildcats (37-18) to a quick early lead, and some outstanding pitching made the lead hold up as UofA advanced to the semifinals against the winner of Thursday's West Virginia-Cincinnati game.
The Cougars, who upset Arizona State 2-0 on Wednesday, finished the season with a 28-27 record. For the second-straight game, BYU's bats were uncommonly silent, as the Cougars could muster only six hits off three Arizona pitchers, and struck out 10 times.
Arizona took a 3-0 lead in the fifth inning when White tripled and scored on Maddox Mihalakis' single.
BYU threatened in the top of the eighth inning after Parker Goff doubled, stole third on a wild pitch, and then reached home on Ryder Robinson's RBI single. That cut the Arizona lead to 3-1, but reliever Tony Pluta recovered after giving up the hit to Robinson and got out of the rest of the inning unscathed.
Luke Anderson hit a liner up the middle, but Pluta got a glove on the ball to knock it down and Anderson was thrown out at first. Cooper Vest struck out on three pitches with runners on first and third for the second out, and Bryker Hurdsman grounded out to end the inning.
Arizona got an insurance run in the top of the eighth on an RBI double by Dom Rodriguez.
Crew McChesney, Brock Watkins and Matt Hansen were retired in order in the ninth, and BYU's second season in the Big 12 was over.
Anderson and Goff collected two hits apiece for BYU, which stranded seven runners. In the two tournament games, the Cougars were 2 of 18 with runners in scoring position.
Jake Porter got the start for BYU, and was relieved by Brett Hansen in the second inning. Garrison Sumner carried the Cougars through the middle innings, striking out seven and allowing three hits and one run in four innings of work.