The West Virginia Mountaineers exploded during a decisive game one win against Kennesaw State, torching the Owls 16-2. The Mountaineers welcomed their fans for their first home game at Kendrick Family Ballpark to stay undefeated on the season (13-0). Read West Virginia baseball crushes Kennesaw State in game one below.
Game Recap
West Virginia struck first in the second inning. After a two-out error and a wild pitch landed a runner on third, Chase Swain singled on a liner up the middle to score Skylar King and put the Mountaineers up 1-0.
The Owls answered in the third when outfielder, Jackson Chirello, smacked a solo home run to right-center, tying the game at 1-1. In the bottom of the third, Sam White ripped a double down the right-filed line to score Logan Sauve and, on the very next pitch, Jace Rinehart crushed a two-run home run to put the Mountaineers up 4-1.
READ: WVU, QUINERLY BEATS K-STATE TO ADVANCE IN BIG 12 TOURNAMENT
WVU never looked back. In the seventh inning, the Mountaineers broke the game wide open with a nine run inning. WVU sent 13 batters to the plate in the seventh, and seven players recorded an RBI on a torrent of doubles and singles. The Mountaineers ended the seventh up 15-2. They tacked on one more run in the eighth.
WVU left-handed starting pitcher, Griffin Kirn, turned in another solid outing, recording another win to make him 3-0 on the season. Kirn pitched 5.1 innings and recorded 6 strikeouts. He scattered four hits and gave up two earned runs, both off of solo home runs by the Owls. He struggled a little bit with control, walking four batters and throwing two wild pitches. This is something to keep in mind as WVU heads into Big 12 conference play.
Four Mountaineer relievers (Reese Bassinger, Bryant Yoak, Cole Fehrman, and JJ Glassock) were perfect in 3.2 innings. The bullpen continues to be excellent this season, as all four relievers did not give up a hit on Friday. Bryant Yoak’s performance was particularly impressive. Yoak tossed a scoreless eighth inning with two strikeout on 14 pitches. Although, by that point, the Mountaineers were up 15-2, so Yoak could afford to be as aggressive as he wanted. Nevertheless, the WVU bullpen continues to impress.
Notable Moments
The WVU offense exploded for 16 runs on 18 hits. This marks their fourth straight game notching 10 runs or more. The lineup hit .450 collectively and went 9-19 with runners in scoring position. Skylar King was a major player on the base paths. He recorded four runs for the Mountaineers Friday afternoon.
The game featured many notable moments and milestones for the Mountaineers and Owls alike. WVU’s Sam White extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a four-hit performance. Rinehart’s home run was his second in as many games. He leads the team with 12 RBIs, continuing to eat at the plate.
For Kennesaw State, Donovan Cash’s solo home run moved him to second all-time on KSU home’s run list (Division I era) with 26 long balls for his career. Chirello’s homer in the second inning was the first of his career, an exciting moment for one of the Owls’s young stars, even if the game got away from them.
Sadly, KSU’s starter, Braden Osbolt, left the game early with a what WVU head coach, Steve Sabins, said looked like a UCL tear.
Next Up
The Mountaineers (13-0) continue to roll this season. WVU’s offense has been sensational in the last four games. The explosion of offense has allowed the Mountaineers’ pitching staff to be aggressive with their bullpen, while saving their starters from going deep into games as they begin to think about Big 12 play. Needless to say, first-year head coach, Steve Sabins, has to be ecstatic with his team’s play thus far this year
The West Virginia Mountaineers will play Kennesaw State at 2:00 pm on March 8th, 2025 for the second in a three-game series. The game will be played at Kendrick Family Ballpark. Start time is 2:00 pm EST.
