LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV baseball team came up short against the Pac-12 conference visitor Utah, 12-9, during the Tuesday afternoon matchup held at Earl E. Wilson Stadium.

The Rebels saw their record drop 4-4, while the Utes improved 5-1-1. 

UNLV took the lead in the bottom of the second frame with Eric Bigani's second homer of the season, bringing in Joey Walls and putting the Rebels on the board 2-0. Utah grabbed four RBIs in the top of the third, only for the Rebels to add four RBIs of their own off of five hits, 6-4.

The Utes took the lead in top of the sixth frame with another four RBIs, bringing them to a three-run lead, 9-6. By the bottom of the seventh, they increased their lead to six-runs, 12-6. The Rebels came into the bottom of the ninth swinging and scored three runs, but came up short.

Dane Baker (1-0) earned his first win of the season after going 1.2 innings and only allowing three hits.

Peyton Fuller (0-2) was saddled with his second loss of the season after pitching 1.0 innings, allowing four hits, four runs and two strikeouts. 

UP NEXT: UNLV starts a three-game home series against Cal Poly, beginning Friday with first pitch set for 6:05 p.m., followed by a two-game match-up against Utah Valley (March 7-8).

-UNLV-