Kurt Heyer pitched a complete game to earn his 20th career win and the Wildcats' bats pounded out 19 hits as fourth-ranked Arizona defeated Utah 11-2 on Thursday night at Spring Mobile Ballpark.
Arizona (22-8, 8-2 Pac-12) won its sixth straight conference game and, for the first time in 17 ballgames, never trailed. The Wildcats scored three first-inning runs and enjoyed a 9-1 lead after five innings before cruising behind Heyer’s performance on the mound.
Heyer improved to 5-1 on the season as he scattered eight hits, allowed just two runs, struck out four and walked none. It was his second complete game of the season -- the fifth of his career -- and UA’s third in the last four games.
All nine UA starters collected a base hit, eight scored a run and six had a run batted in. Johnny Field had a career-high four base hits to go with four runs scored, Alex Mejia went 2 for 4 with three RBIs and Bobby Brown collected two hits, including a triple, to go along with three RBIs to pace the 19-hit attack that tied a season-best performance for the Wildcats.
Arizona opened the scoring with three first-inning runs on four consecutive base hits. Joey Rickard singled to lead off and moved to third on Field’s double. Mejia followed with a double of his own to drive in both runners before Refsnyder singled home Mejia to push the lead to 3-0.
Utah (7-21, 3-7 Pac-12) scored its first run in the bottom of the second inning when former Arizona player Shaun Cooper hit a solo home run to right field.
The Wildcats scored two more runs on three hits in the top of the third. With the bases loaded and one out, Brown lined a single up the middle to score Field and Refsnyder.
Utah starter Joe Pond gave up another run in the fourth before being chased in a three-run fifth-inning. Pond (2-5) surrendered eight runs, all earned, on 13 hits. He struck out three and walked one.
Pond was replaced by Josh Chapman, who gave up two runs, one earned, on five hits in 2 2/3 innings of relief. Blake Golding finished the game for the Utes, going two innings and allowing one run on one hit.
Arizona added single runs in the eighth and ninth innings before the Utes pushed across their final run in the bottom of the ninth to make it 11-2.
