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Show 6 Friday March 30, 2012 SPORTS 31° / 9 a.m. 43° / 3 p.m. conditions & weather from utahskiweather.com Spring skiing conditions TODAY'S SKI REPORT Alta www.dailyutahchronicle.corn Brighton UPCOMING SPORTS EVENTS 31° / 9 a.m. 43° / 3 p.m. Canyons 36° / 9 a.m. / 3 p.m. Deer Valley 36° / 9 a.m. 4 90 I 3 p.m. Snowbird 31° / 9 a.m. 43° / 3 p.m. Solitude 32" p.m. 44° / 3 a.m. BASEBALL TODAY: Baseball Utah vs. UCLA 6 p.m. Spring Mobile Ballpark Men's Tennis Utah vs. California 1:30 p.m. Eccles Tennis Center Track & Field Utah @ UVU Open All Day Orem Golf Utah @ U.S. Intercollegiate Invitational All Day Stanford, Calif SATURDAY: Baseball Utah vs. UCLA 1 p.m. Spring Mobile Ballpark AP RANKINGS GYMNASTICS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 24 197.093 Oklahoma 196.890 UCLA 196.889 Alabama 196.918 Nebraska 196.596 Georgia 196.844 Oregon State 196.441 196.773 LSU 195.977 Arkansas 196.106 Stanford 196.033 Ohio State 196.037 Penn State 195.958 Denver 195.356 Boise State 195.616 Arizona 195.442 Minnesota 195.179 Auburn 195.381 Missouri 195.354 North Carolina State 195.287 Michigan 195.236 Illinois 195.198 Washington 194.908 Kentucky 194.669 Iowa State Tied 194.730 Florida TODD HOOPER/The Daily Utah Chronicle Parker Morin and the Ute baseball team will need to bring their best tonight as they face No. 6 UCLA, particularly on the offensive end. On the mound for the Bruins will be one of the nation's top pitchers, Adam Plutko. No. 6 Bruins roll into SLC Bubba Brown STAFF WRITER The Utah baseball media guide doesn't have a listing of the highest-ranked teams the Utes have ever hosted, but one thing is certain: The Utes' next opponent is one of the highest-ranked teams that has ever visited Salt Lake City. The Utes (7-16, 3-3 Pac-12) kick off a series against No. 6 UCLA SOFTBALL (17-5, 4-2 Pac-12) tonight in the first-ever Pac-12 series in Salt Lake City. Utah head coach Bill Kinneberg, who spent time as an assistant coach at Arizona State before becoming an associate head coach at Arizona in the old Pac-io, said welcoming some of the best teams in the nation is something the Utes and their fans should get used to. "I spent seven years in the Pac12, and it's a grind," Kinneberg said. "It's really hard. Week after week, you're playing great teams, and if you don't bring your A game, you're going to get trounced. Our guys have to learn that." Right from the start of the series, the Utes will be seeing the best the Bruins have to offer. UCLA's starting pitcher tonight, sophomore Adam Plutko, is among the best hurlers in the Pac-12 and comes into the game having compiled a 3.03 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 39 innings. Before the season, Baseball America ranked Plutko as the conference's top 2013 draft prospect, meaning there's a good chance he'll go early in the first round in next year's MLB draft. Utes outfielder Tyler Relf said facing pitchers like Plutko brings a heightened intensity to the game. See BRUINS Page 8 FOOTBALL Wide receivers ready to go iiIMIll Utah offense looks strong at spring camp Parker Lee STAFF WRITER CHRISTOPHER REEVES/The Daily Utah Chronicle Jackie Sweet brings her teammates home as she knocks the ball past her defenders in the outfield. Since being swept by Washington, Utah has outscored opponents 17-5 in their past two games. Utes in offensive groove after Bengal bashing Derek Siddoway STAFF WRITER A bystander arriving at the UtahIdaho State game at the beginning of the third inning might have been surprised to see the score 2-1 in the Bengals' favor. By the time the Utes were finished, however, they had not only blown the hinges of a one-run lead but also notched a solid 10-2 victory in five innings. At 23-8, Utah needs just five wins, a mere 20 percent of their remaining games, to qualify for postseason. Since being swept in the team's first conference series against Washington, a series loss mainly because of the Utes leaving runners on base, Utah head coach Amy Hogue has fo- cused her team almost exclusively on offensive setups. In the two games following Utah's 0-3 conference opener weekend, the Utes have outhit opponents 21-7 and won by a combined 17-5 score. Aided by strong defense and patience at the plate, Utah blew past the Bengals with four runs in the third. Kelsi Hoopiiaina started the rotation with a walk and moments later stole second before senior teammate Tia Palauni drew a walk of her own. In typical fashion that helped pave her way to the top of the Pac-12 hitting charts, third baseman Whitney Holm went to work. After bringing Hoopiiaini home, Holm set the table for See HITTING Page 8 Some position groups on the Utah football team lost more graduating seniors than others. The offensive line and linebacking corps took major hits and the Utes will be hard-pressed to reload in those areas. When it comes to wide receivers, though, Utah is in good shape. The Utes' only loss at receiver was Luke Matthews, and six of last season's seven leading receivers are back. Although the Utes are only a week into spring ball, sophomore wideout Dres Anderson said the offense is already starting to run like a well-oiled machine. "The offense is looking great," Anderson said. "We're just out here dominating. The defense looks good too, but our offense looks demanding and we are really coming together." Anderson was second on the team last season in receptions and receiving yards as a freshman. He will likely be quarterback Jordan Wynn's second option after senior DeVonte Christopher, who was the team's leading receiver last season. However, Anderson and Christopher won't be Wynn's only options by any means. Tight ends Dallin Rogers and Kendrick Moeai both played key roles on offense last season and both return for 2012. Also returning for the Utes is senior Reggie Dunn, who was one of four Utah players with at least 200 yards receiving a year ago. He said spring ball is a good time to get the offense in sync, especially with Wynn returning to the starting lineup. "It's up to us to give Jordan CHRISTOPHER REEVES/The Daily Utah Chronicle Senior wide receiver DeVonte Christopher battles his opponent to get open for a pass during spring camp training at the Rice-Eccles Stadium. confidence," Dunn said. "We have to make sure we're catching balls because that gives him the confidence to make plays." The receivers will need to give Wynn every ounce of confidence possible, because this year's team cannot afford to replicate the lack of production from last season's squad. Utah's offense was last in the Pac-12 last season, and that was with the conference's second leading rusher, John White. See WIDE RECEIVERS Page 8 |