BYU baseball looks for a better '09

PROVO — When discussing the recently completed BYU baseball season, outfielder Kent Walton doesn't waste much time uttering the "D" word — as in disappointment.

The Cougars finished 22-36, their first losing season since 2004 and their worst campaign since posting a 26-31 mark in 1999. Not only did BYU finish No. 4 in the Mountain West Conference, but it also lost both games in the MWC Tournament to close out the disheartening campaign.

"It was a big disappointment for me personally and for us a team," Walton said. "I had expected to help out the team better than I did.

"Anything less than a Mountain West Conference championship is not acceptable. We need to play better baseball. Our hitting was fine, but we needed to throw more strikes and play better defense. It was disappointing."

Coach Vance Law was also disappointed in his team's play.

"It's been a rough one," he said. "Time will heal everything, but it's a tough one to go through. We were never able to put a lengthy winning streak together. We were very optimistic going into the season. But we weren't able to respond as well as we had hoped."

Among the more telling numbers from the season was a bloated team earned run average of 7.27. The Cougars also committed 117 errors.

"We had deficiencies offensively, defensively and with our pitching," Law said. "We didn't drive in as many runners as I would have liked. We struck out too many times and we had too many errors. We've got to be tougher, more disciplined. The players need to put the team first, ahead of individual performances."

Disappointments aside, there were some memorable moments, including a visit from two-time defending national champion Oregon State. Though BYU lost both games to the Beavers, hosting such a prominent team in Provo created a buzz at Miller Park.

Law's most memorable moment was his team's amazing comeback against Utah in the regular-season finale. Trailing 10-0 after seven innings, the Cougars rallied to score 12 runs in the eighth inning on 11 singles. Ten of those runs were scored before the Utes had recorded an out. BYU ended up winning, 13-10.

"It was indescribable. All of the sudden the hits kept coming," Law said. "I don't know if that will happen again in my career."