The West Virginia University baseball team got back in the win column against in-state rivals Marshall on Tuesday evening, with a 7-0 win at Kendrick Family Ballpark. Read more WVU baseball returns to winning ways in 7-0 defeat of Marshall.
The Mountaineers (20-3, 2-2 Big 12) took an early lead and never looked back, dispatching the Thundering Herd (12-13, 2-4 Sun Belt) with ease.
Game Recap
WVU took an early lead in the bottom of the first, as junior center fielder Skylar King flew out to left field to drive in freshman catcher Gavin Kelly. Redshirt junior third baseman Chase Swain then homered to left field in the bottom of the second to double the lead.
In the bottom of the third inning King drove in another run as singled up the middle, plating senior left fielder Kyle West. A fourth run was added when King stole second base and the Marshall throw went into center field, allowing senior right fielder Jace Rinehart to score and make it 5-0. Swain then hit an RBI single to right field as King crossed home plate as the sixth run. To cap off a four-run inning, sophomore right fielder Armani Guzman singled through the right side, driving in Swain and putting the Mountaineers up 6-0.
READ: WVU TO COMPLETE IN PENNSYLVANIA REGIONAL
A highlight reel play occurred in the bottom of the fourth inning, when Rinehart appeared to pup up to first base, but amidst the confusion of which Marshall fielder was to catch it, the ball dropped. Rinehart has already seen this, and rounded first base to dive into second base.
Kelly tacked on a seventh run in the bottom of the eighth inning when he drove in Guzman.
Making the Most of their Chances
WVU may not have had a ton of hits, going 8-30 (.266) but made the most of their chances, walking six times, stealing five bases and running the bases intelligently to score seven runs. Swain (2-4, one run, one home run) as well as King (1-3) both drove in two runs, while Guzman and Rinehart each had two hits. West went 0-2, but walked three times, stole a base and scored a run.
The Pitching Staff
It was a six-man scoreless effort from the Mountaineers pitching staff, as the six Mountaineers combined for nine innings, four hits, three walks, seven strikeouts and no runs allowed. Freshman right-handed pitcher David Hagen got the start, going four innings giving up a hit and a walk. Senior righty Southern Indiana transfer Tyler Hutson got the fifth and the sixth innings, giving up two hits and a walk. Freshman Mac Stiffler gave up just one walk while striking out two in the seventh, while junior righty Robby Porco gave up one hit in the eight. Freshman righty Bryant Yoak struck out the only batter he faced for the first out of the ninth, before junior lefty Ben McDougal got the final two outs.
It’s an earlier weekend series than normal, as the Mountaineers start their series against BYU at Miller Park in Provo, Utah at 8:30 p.m.
The Mountaineers have a brief history with the Cougars, having won two out of three games in last year’s series in Morgantown.
Both BYU (13-9, 3-3 Big 12) and West Virginia sit tied for eighth place in the Big 12 by nature of both being .500 in conference play.
