Sunday’s game between West Virginia and Ohio State at the Kendrick Family Ballpark was an ugly one for the Mountaineers, as they dropped their first series of the season, in a blowout 26-7 loss to the Buckeyes.
Injuries have plagued WVU all season long, but on Sunday it was the Mountaineer pitchers who were the story as they walk 12 batters, hit another seven, as they gave up 26 runs for the fourth time in program history and dropped their first series of the season.
Tyler Switalski got the start on the mound, his second of the week. Switalski (1-1) pitched 2.0 innings, and gave up four runs on two hits, walking three, and hitting one batter.
Switalski would be the first of nine pitchers to take the mound for WVU on Sunday. Out of those nine, five of them hit at least one batter, seven walked at least one batter, and seven allowed at least one run.
The first of Ohio State’s big innings came in the third. Switalski started the inning with a walk and hit batter and was immediately pulled. Things wouldn’t get better for Hambleton Oliver, as the next three batters went single, home run, home run, in order, as Ohio State put up five runs in the third and led 7-2.
WVU got two runs back in the fourth inning, and three runs is the closest they would get against the Buckeyes on Sunday.
Oliver started the sixth inning and hit a batter, and was then immediately pulled for David Hagaman. Just like when Oliver came in, it was the same story for Hagaman, who couldn’t handle OSU’s lineup.
Ohio State totaled eight runs on six hits in the sixth inning, facing four Mountaineer pitchers in the process. Leading 15-4, the damage wasn’t done. Ohio State scored four more in the seventh, and seven more in the eighth.
Finally, the Buckeyes were retired in order, as Carson Estridge pitched a perfect ninth inning.
WVU’s offense would catch fire late after posting four runs in the first six innings. WVU scored two in the seventh on a pair of bases-loaded walks, before they scored five more in the ninth as Morgantown native Aaron Jamison hit a grand slam.
The 26 runs WVU surrendered were the most they’ve allowed in a game since Apr. 6, 2012 against Villanova, and they’ve given up 26 runs twice in school history, and more than 26 only once (29). It was also the first time since that Villanova game that WVU has allowed 17 hits and walked at least 12 in a game. Ironically, that was also a 26-11 loss.
WVU dropped their first series of the season, and is back in action at home against Marshall on Wednesday night.
