Utah Tech used timely hitting, strong pitching, and a stellar late-game defensive play, to come away with a 2-1 victory at Pacific in game two of its weekend road series on Friday night at Klein Family Field. 
 
After being set down in order through the first three innings, the Trailblazers (6-1/0-0 WAC) finally cracked the scoreboard in the fourth when lead-off hitter Kyle McDaniel blasted his first home run of the season over the right field wall.
 
McDaniel's homer made history as it extended his career-long hit streak to 21-straight games, which tied Utah Tech's four-year era school record held by former Blazer slugger Jake Engel (2019-21). 
 
In addition, McDaniel's homer extended his program NCAA-era school record on-base streak to 48-straight games.  
 
Pacific (3-3) quickly countered with a run of its own in the home fourth thanks to a Peyton Richards sacrifice fly out.
 
The score remained deadlocked until the seventh when with two outs and runners on the corners, Ty Johnsen blooped a pinch-hit single into shallow left center to chase home Miller Durham and make a 2-1 game.
 
The Tigers threatened to again tie the game after the stretch with a runner at third and two outs in the bottom of the seventh.
 
Head coach Chris Pfatenhauer came out of the dugout and called on his third baseman Ryan Kroepel to move to the mound. The Blazer closer needed only one pitch to end the threat when he got Tiger infielder Jake Tandy to ground out to end the inning.
 
Kroepel wound up retiring all seven Tiger hitters he faced the rest of the way, including three on strikes. 
 
Meanwhile the Blazer defense turned in a stellar double play in the eighth when after a one-out error, freshman centerfielder Mays Madsen made a spectacular diving catch on a deep fly ball in the left center gap. Mays then fired a strike to shortstop Petey Soto Jr., who relayed the ball on to first baseman Miller Durham to double off the Tiger base runner and end the inning. 

Utah Tech finished with six hits on the night, with Durham accounting for two of those safeties to go with his game-winning run.
 
Senior righthander Dakoda West was stellar in his second start of the year, striking out four while limiting Pacific to only one run on six hits, all singles, in 5.2 innings, though he did not figure in the decision.
 
Sophomore reliever Talan Kelly (W, 1-0) was credited with his second collegiate win after he tossed an inning of hitless relief, while Kroepel earned his third save in as many appearances to begin the season. 
 
Utah Tech will look to clinch the series win in the rubber game of the three-game set on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. (MT).