West Virginia stayed in North Carolina this weekend, following their two game sweep of Appalachian State in the mid-week, taking on UNC Greensboro. The Mountaineers won all three games against the Spartans, including a double-header on Saturday.
WVU scored 28 runs on 23 hits in the first game on Saturday, the third consecutive game the Mountaineers scored double-digit runs.
Junior pitcher Ben Hampton got his first win of the season, going five innings, giving up one run, four hits and striking out five.
The WVU bullpen played well once again, going a combined four innings in relief and giving up one run.
West Virginia started the game hot early, scoring three runs in the first inning and three in the third inning. The offense exploded in the fourth inning, scoring a season-high 13 runs in the inning. West Virginia got nine hits in the inning, and 16 hitters came to the plate.
The Mountaineers scored in each of the next four innings, with UNC Greensboro scoring a run each in the fourth and ninth innings.
Four Mountaineers hit a homerun in the game, Braden Barry (4), Nick Barone (1), Kevin Dowdell (1), and Grant Hussey (3). Dayne Leonard and Caleb McNeely had four hits each.
The second game of the double-header was much more of a pitcher’s affair. Fifth-year WVU pitcher Ben Traxel threw his third complete game of the season, and the third in his last four starts. Traxel gave up six hits and one run while striking out six batters in the complete game.
West Virginia went up early again in the game on a Grant Hussey two run homerun in the second inning. WVU struck again in the fifth on a JJ Wetherholt RBI single, and once more in the seventh on a RBI sac-fly by Braden Barry.
UNC Greensboro got their only run of the game in the sixth inning on a Caleb Cozart solo homerun. The Spartans had the opportunity to tie the game in the eighth, getting two runners on base with two outs, but Traxel forced a groundout to end the inning.
Five different Mountaineers recorded a hit in the game, with JJ Wetherholt being the only player to record multiple hits with two.
On Sunday afternoon the West Virginia pitching was once again shining, combining to throw a one-hitter in the game. Sophomore pitcher Grant Siegel went five innings, allowing the lone Spartan hit, striking out five and earning his second win of the season. Robby Porco, Keegan Allen, Noah Short and Carlson Reed combined for four innings of no-hit pitching out of the bullpen.
West Virginia struck for four runs in the second inning, on a Logan Suave RBI sacrafice-fly and Braden Barry’s second home run of the series, this time a three run shot. The Mountaineers scored again in the following inning on a Tevin Tucker bases-loaded hit by pitch, but that was all WVU would get in the inning.
Two more runs were added by West Virginia in the sixth on a Caleb McNeely bases loaded walk, followed by Sam White grounding into a double-play to push a run in. WVU added an insurance run in the ninth on a Tevin Tucker single.
Four Mountaineers recorded two hits in the wins, Braden Barry, JJ Wetherholt, Landon Wallace and Tevin Tucker. Barry also added three RBI’s, Tucker added two, with Caleb McNeely and Logan Suave each recording one.
West Virginia will return home on Tuesday for a two game series with Hofstra. The next six Mountaineers games will be at Monongalia Ballpark.
Photo by Aaron Parker, Blue Gold Sports
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