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OREM, Utah — Utah Valley baseball opens its 2026 home schedule this weekend with a four-game series against UC Riverside. The opener is set for Friday, Feb. 26, at 4:05 p.m. MT. The teams will play a doubleheader Saturday beginning at noon MT, followed by the series finale Sunday at 12:05 p.m. MT.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Utah Valley’s home series will air on ESPN+ with Jordan Bianucci (play-by-play) and Brice Larson (analyst) calling Friday’s and Sunday’s games. Michael Forgione will join Bianucci on the call for Saturday’s doubleheader.
An audio-only broadcast will be available on GoUVU.com and the 103.9 and 98.3 ESPN The Fan app.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines were swept last weekend at Reno by Mountain West favorite Nevada. Mason Hamlin raised his batting average to .440 after going 6-for-15 with three extra-base hits, including his first home run in a UVU uniform.
Chipper Beck finished 4-for-7, while Luke Iverson recorded five RBIs, including three in Sunday’s series finale.
Utah Valley battled difficult weather conditions, but the pitching staff turned in several strong performances. Starters Colton Kennedy and Landon Zaborowski have each held opponents to a batting average under .200 this season. Bradley Gilbert has also been solid out of the bullpen, logging seven innings with 11 strikeouts, one behind Zaborowski for the team lead.
SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS
UC Riverside enters the weekend with a 2-6 record. The Highlanders were swept by Utah Tech before taking a series from Wagner last weekend. This marks their first trip to Orem.
Offensively, UC Riverside is batting .254 as a team and is led by Esteban Sepulveda, Jaxon Byrd and Manoah Chapman, all of whom are hitting above .350.
The Highlanders carry a 6.49 team ERA. Left-hander Matthew O’Brien leads the starting rotation with 12 innings pitched and a 0-1 record. Former major leaguer Troy Percival is in his first season as UC Riverside’s pitching coach. Percival previously spent five seasons as the Highlanders’ head coach and enjoyed a long MLB career that included four All-Star selections and more than 500 career saves, ranking him 14th all-time.
SPRING TRAINING STORIES
Three former Wolverines have appeared in major league spring training games this year. Paxton Schultz is on the Washington Nationals’ 40-man roster and has made two scoreless appearances. Casey Anderson made his Arizona Diamondbacks spring debut with two strikeouts, and Daniel Dickinson has also appeared in Milwaukee Brewers spring training as a minor league call-up.
UP NEXT
Utah Valley continues its 12-game homestand and will host Northern Colorado for a five-game series beginning Friday, March 6.