ST. GEORGE, Utah – The Northwest Nazarene baseball team struggled hitting and pitching Saturday, falling 8-3 to No. 10 Colorado Mesa at Dixie State in Utah.

Kyle Redford hit a solo home run in the second and the Nighthawks (1-3 overall) were in the game until the fifth when a bad break cost them two runs.

With runners at second and third and two outs, reliever Dylan Cure induced a ground ball to first base, but couldn't cover the bag because of a strained quad. Two runs scored and NNU trailed 6-3.

"All things considered, he pitched well," NNU coach Joe Schaefer said. "Ryan (Connor) pitched well and so did Bailey (Daguio). Overall, they are a good offensive team and they hit mistakes and took advantage of our mistakes today."

Cure came into the game in the fourth inning with the bases loaded and no outs, escaping that jam by only allowing one run.

But the NNU offense couldn't muster much, finishing with three runs on five hits.

"I was hoping to be a little more competitive today," Schaefer said. "I thought offensively we would be able to make more positive strides. Individually there were a couple of guys who did that and we kept the strikeouts down, but we still look like a lost offensive team right now.

"We need to get home and put some work in and get back on track."

NNU has a week off before heading to the Academy of Art in San Francisco, California for four games Feb. 22-23.

NNU trailed 2-0 early Saturday, before Redford hit a leadoff home run to left center in the second to make it 2-1.

Jesse Hilyard was then hit by a pitch, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on a Greg Casper single to left field to tie the game. The Nighthawks had the bases loaded, but Rocco Ferrari grounded into a double play to end the threat.

Trailing 3-2 headed to the top of the fifth, Ferrari drew a four-pitch walk and went to second on a wild pitch. Michael Hults bunted him over and Parker Price hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game back up.

Cameron Duke finished 2-for-3, while Cure took the loss in relief.