Provo, UT (U-WIRE) -- Cougar baseball showed its offensive power by scoring 53 runs en route of a sweep in the three-game series against the Air Force Falcons last weekend.

BYU will play today in Orem against Utah Valley State College for the third time this season.

Game 1 against Air Force saw BYU come out swinging. The team scored five runs in the first inning and six in the second. Air Force was able to put one run on the board, but then the Cougars answered back by scoring seven in the fourth, and sixth in the fifth, including a grand slam by outfielder Kory Knell.

"We have a lot of good hitters," Knell said. "I love playing these games."

BYU ended up winning the first game of the series 25-2. Knell said the team would be prepared for the next game and would not experience a letdown after blowing out the Falcons. Knell's prediction proved right as BYU won Game 2 by a score of 10-4.

That game featured Cougar third baseman Brandon Taylor hitting two home runs, including one that went over the scoreboard in left field. BYU head coach Vance Law estimated the ball went 420 feet.

"I made a small adjustment before the game today," Taylor said in a news release. "I do better when I just react to the pitch and not anticipate it."

The third game of the series was more of the same as Taylor again hit two home runs, putting him with a team leading 11 homers for the season.

BYU's second baseman Sean McNaughton led the game off with a triple, marking the twelfth straight game he has hit safely in. McNaughton's hitting streak is second on the team behind Apana Nakayama and Jeff Hiestand, who have both have hit safely in 13 straight games. The Cougars defeated the Falcons in Game 3 by another impressive score of 18-5.

"This type of game can build confidence for out team," Law said. "We are trying to build ourselves up, and we can win when we play the way that we are capable of."

BYU now posts a record of 20-7-1 and is in first place in the Mountain West Conference. The team will travel down University Parkway today to face the UVSC Wolverines, a team they have defeated twice this season. This will be the first time BYU has played in UVSC's Parkway Crossing Stadium and just the fourth baseball game played in the new facility.

BYU's Nakayama, who played for UVSC in 2001 and 2002, said he is excited to face his old team.

"It's always fun to play UVSC," Nakayama said. "They are a great ball club."

(C) 2004 The Daily Universe via U-WIRE