Utah Back on Track With 10-3 Victory Over Texas Tech

Friday, April 17

Salt Lake City, Utah

6 p.m.

University of Utah

18-15, 7-9

Texas Tech

20-17, 6-10

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Texas Tech	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	10	1
Utah	2	0	2	0	3	0	0	3	X	10	11	0

Photo by: Sophia Kuder/Utah Athletics

Utah Back on Track With 10-3 Victory Over Texas Tech

4/17/2026 10:25 PM | Baseball

Box Score

Diamant deals 3.2 innings of relief with six strikeouts

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah baseball team used power hitting and dominant relief pitching to pull away with a 10-3 win over Texas Tech in the series opener on Friday night at America First Ballpark.

It was the first meeting in baseball between the two programs.

With Texas Tech holding a 3-2 lead into the middle innings, the Utes (18-15, 7-9 Big 12) seized control with a series of momentum-shifting swings. Cal Miller delivered the first big blow in the fifth, launching a two-run homer to right-center field that gave Utah key insurance. The freshman went on to finish 3-for-5 with a career-high tying three RBIs including his third home run of the season.

Daniel Arambula and Matt Flaharty added 2-for-3 performances, while Jet Gilliam clubbed his fifth homer of the season—a three-run shot in the eighth inning.

While the offense came through in key moments, Utah's pitching staff was equally impactful in securing the victory. Demitri Diamant (2-0) turned in one of his strongest outings of the season, tossing 3.2 scoreless innings while allowing just two hits and striking out a career-high six batters.

Justin Abercrombie came on for the ninth inning in a non-save situation, capping off a combined relief effort that held Texas Tech scoreless over the final six innings. Ryan Kittredge made the start with regular Friday night arm Colter McAnelly unavailable, going 4.1 innings for the Utes.

Utah got on the board quickly in the first inning, loading the bases with nobody out. Cameron Gurney then laced a 1-2 pitch into left field for a single that brought in Luke Jacobs with the game's first run. Jake Long would score later in the inning to give the Utes the early 2-0 lead.

Kittredge spotted the Red Raiders a one-out single in the second inning but was unfazed and induced a double play to get out of the inning.

Tech pulled in front after a three-hit third inning that included a home run for Logan Hughes as the Red Raiders went ahead by a 3-2 score. But Miller quickly leveled the score in the home half of the third with a base hit that brought Arambula home from second base. Two batters later, Flaharty put a single into left field that scored Gurney and gave Utah the lead for the rest of the night.

Diamant came on with one out in the fifth and a runner on first base. He later faced a bases-loaded situation but got out of the jam with a fly ball.

Utah set the stage for Miller's long ball in the fifth with a leadoff walk for Arambula. Miller would turn on the first pitch he saw and send it 422 feet to right center field for the two-run shot to extend the Utes' lead to 6-3. Later in the inning and with Gilliam on third base, Derek Smith sent a 105-mile per hour rocket to the hot corner that netted an infield single and scored Gilliam for a 7-3 Utah advantage.

Diamant struck out the side in the seventh, unfazed by a leadoff double. He was given even more insurance in the bottom of the eighth on Gilliam's big fly, a three-run shot on the heels of Gurney being hit by a pitch plus an infield pop up for Miller that landed behind the mound for a single.

As the game neared its end, head coach Gary Henderson called upon Abercrombie for the ninth inning. He fanned his first batter on three pitches, induced a fly ball and then won a seven-pitch battle for another strikeout and a 1-2-3 inning to wrap up the victory.

Next Up
Utah and Texas Tech will play the middle game of this three-game set on Saturday with first pitch at 2 p.m. MT inside America First Ballpark. Fans are encouraged to arrive early as Utah will be holding a special recognition for the 10^th anniversary of its 2016 Pac-12 Championship team.

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Keep up with the Utes by following @utahbaseball and by visiting www.UtahUtes.com. Download the Utah 360 app here.