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Show DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE 8 Tuesday, March 26, 2013 SOFTBALL Utes to play UVU on half-finished field Connor Wallace STAFF WRITER The sounds of a saw cutting into metal and the sight of heavy machinery aren't common at softball practice, but they are in Utah's case. With construction workers cutting, carrying and corresponding in order to make progress on the half-finished Utah Softball Stadium, one might expect games wouldn't be played there for another year. Nevertheless, the Utes (r3-13I) will debut in their new park against Utah Valley University tonight at 6 p.m. The stadium, which was supposed to be finished by the end of January, isn't completed, but the field and bullpens are ready to go, so the home opener will continue as planned. This will be the second time this year the Utes and Wolverines have faced each other. On March 5, Utah beat UVU in a 10-inning, back-and-forth matchup. Because of today's contest, the Utes didn't take yesterday to rest after losing to Cal over the weekend. Since the contest three weeks ago was so close, Utah players and coaches recognize they'll be in for a battle tonight. In particu- BULLINGER Continued from page 6 these types of games are going to become more commonplace. The first time Butler made the NCAA championship game, it was inspiring and cute. The second time, it was boring. It's no secret the playing field is leveling. Powerhouse programs like Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and others recruit the best players — just lar, Utah head coach Amy Hogue is focused on UVU's pitching. "Tiffany Mills is going to make us work," Hogue said. "She doesn't walk kids, and she makes you hit stuff on the corners all day long — stuff that is down and off speed and away from you — which has been tough for us. We are going to have to be disciplined as hitters to not over swing and just to drive the ball hard to the right side and hit early and often." So far this season, hitting early and often has been a problem for the Utes. They have had to rely on defense and pitching to keep them in games while seeing just sporadic outputs of offense, mostly against weaker competition. "If we don't [hit], we're going to end up in an extra-inning game with them if we're lucky," Hogue said. "If we do that early and often, then that will be a fun game for us and for a home opener at our new stadium." The game will be the first in a four-game homestand for Utah, as it will return to Pac-12 play on Thursday against Arizona. c.wallace@chronicle.utah.edu Twitter: @ConnorRWallace as they used to — but their top talent leaves after just one year. The result is ugly. We now get the pleasure of watching talented teams that have no idea how to shoot or play basketball, giving more experienced low-level teams like Harvard and Florida Gulf Coast opportunities to poach victories in the tournament. With more and more players leaving after one year and having full intent to do so even before the season The Utes' new softball field, which was scheduled to be completed by January, still isn't finished. The Utes will debut in their unfinished stadium tonight against Utah Valley University tonight at 6 p.m. begins, the lower-tier teams will become stronger and stronger. This means more upsets to the point that the word will lose its meaning. This isn't an appealing future. Nobody would prefer a La Salle-Florida Gulf Coast title game over a Duke-Kansas showdown, but it should be known that this kind of upheaval in college basketball would have a shelf life. The reason is simple: money. If there is a proliferation of upsets, and the Final Four becomes consistently filled with schools nobody has ever heard of, networks and the NCAA will start losing money. Unless the NBA steps in and raises its minimum age limit, one of two things would happen. First, conference commissioners would encourage coaches to recruit players who stick around longer than one season. This allows a conference to market players that are on campuses for more than one year, and they would actually learn how to make a jump shot. If that doesn't happen, networks will bolt. The NCAA Tournament will become cheap thrills and will remain as such until major programs return to their former glory in an organic fashion. Eventually, the ship will right itself. But for now, college fans can anticipate more important games featuring teams like La Salle and Florida Gulf Coast. When these teams win their first game or two, it's fun, but it doesn't take long for them to become a virus that can infect the game altogether. In no way should the NCAA or any other body stack the deck against the small schools — we wouldn't want to eliminate upsets altogether. But if the Goliaths lose their stature, it's not nearly as fun to root for the Davids. j.bullinger@ chronicle.utah.edu Twitter: @jakebullinger Hate this font? We're looking for your The Daily Utah Chronicle is hiring page designers. Contact Tyler Pratt. t.prattOchronicle.utah.edu IT SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 10 UNIVERSITY OF UTAH IMP Sign up now 2 013 ORGANICK LECTURE SERIES Peter Neumann PRINCIPAL SCIENTIST // SRI INTERNATIONAL Deals for food, entertainment and everything else for students, faculty and staff at the University of Utah. 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