This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

In the top of the ninth inning, Utah dealt its best card: Dylan Drachler. Twenty-one innings and only one earned run against the Pac-12.

On the play that would be the Utes' undoing, the junior threw what coach Bill Kinneberg called "a good, solid pitch." But Chris Baker's swing was simply better.

The Washington third baseman knocked a down-the-line triple to the right field corner, batting in the winning run in a 5-4 vicory for the Huskies (32-19, 17-11 Pac-12) on Friday afternoon in Smith's Ballpark. Now needing two wins to clinch an outright Pac-12 championship and NCAA berth, Utah (23-27, 17-11) put itself in perilous position in the most important series of the season.

Despite leading the Pac-12 for the better part of two months, the Utes now face a do-or-die situation in their final two games of the year. If they don't go 2-0, it will be a rude awakening after what has been a dream season thus far.

"Our backs are against the wall," Kinneberg said. "We've been in this position all year. We've lost Friday games and rallied back to win the series on the road. We've just gotta get it done."

Unfortunately, the Utes won't have the benefit the next two days of playing with their best starter on the mound. Sophomore Jayson Rose had some shakiness in an eight-inning, 130-pitch outing, but ultimately settled and went deep into the game to preserve Utah's bullpen.

Rose managed to clinch something: He tied the program record for strikeouts in a season (102), with six K's on Friday. He allowed four earned runs in the fourth and fifth inning, but lasted the final three without surrendering a run.

"It's kind of an honor to be at the top of the list at Utah — it's a nice thing to have," Rose said. "It would've been great to pull out this first one, and have momentum going into the weekend. But it's no big deal, we'll go out and win the next two."

It took the Utah lineup a while to warm up against the sharp pitching of Washington starter Noah Bremer. For five innings, the sophomore kept the Utes from crossing the plate, including in a bases-loaded situation in the second inning.

But Utah finally broke through in the sixth, notching three singles to start the inning. The Huskies gathered at the mound with bases loaded, but Bremer remained on the mound.

It would turn out to be one pitch too many: Utah outfielder Andre Jackson belted a three-run double on his first swing, though he was tagged out going for third. Bremer was pulled immediately after the at-bat.

Trailing by one in the seventh, third baseman Dallas Carroll singled with runners in the corners. Kody Davis scored, tying the game at 4-4.

Drachler took the loss, falling to 3-4 on the year. The Utes finished the game on a ground-out double play.

Utah and Washington play at noon both on Saturday and Sunday at Smith's Ballpark. While the Utes can clinch a share of the Pac-12 title with a win Saturday, they must win both for outright title and NCAA berth.

Twitter: @kylegoon