It was a classic pitcher’s duel from Kendrick Family Ballpark on Friday night between West Virginia and Oklahoma State.
Both teams entered their three-game series within a game of each other in the Big 12 standings. The Cowboys were able to do just enough on offense to spoil Major’s night, while the Mountaineer bats could never get going in WVU’s 2-1 loss in game one.
Friday night brings two aces to the mound and both pitchers played as such. Between Major and Oklahoma State’s Sam Garcia, they combined for 24 strikeouts and allowed nine total hits.
Major let out a scream in the top of the eighth inning as he recorded his 13th strikeout of the night. Major struck out the side and seemed to be pleading his offense to get him any run support possible. In the bottom of the inning, the Mountaineers threatened, but like they did all night, they could never get the big hit when it mattered most.
Skylar King started the bottom of the eighth with an infield single, before he reached second base on a pop out to the OSU catcher, tagging from first. WVU would put runners on first and second as Sam White reached on a throw that pulled OSU first baseman Colin Brueggermann off the bag on a dropped third strike.
That would put pressure on the Cowboys, two runners on, one out. In came Carson Benge to pitch, who had started the game in right field. Benge entered Friday with 10 strikeouts in 6.1 innings pitched this year. He picked up two big ones, striking out Ben Lumsden, and then fanning Reed Chumley to strand both runners on second and third.
West Virginia (15-11, 4-3 Big 12) would be 0-for-6 at the plate with runners in scoring position on the evening, and 0-for-9 with runners on base.
WVU’s biggest of their four hits came off the bat of Grant Hussey. Hussey smacked his sixth home run of the season, cutting OSU’s lead to 2-1 in the seventh.
Oklahoma State got on the board in the second inning with Brueggermann going opposite field for a solo home run. They added another off Major (3-2) in the sixth inning, as Benge doubled and then scored on a two-out double.
Garcia (3-3) was just as dominant for OSU as Major was for the Mountaineers. Garcia tossed 7.0 innings, with the only run coming off the blast from Hussey. He struck out 11, walked none, and allowed only three hits. Major went eight innings, surrendering six hits and two runs, with the 13 strikeouts being a career high, doing it on 124 pitches.
Production was at a premium for the Mountaineers who reached base only five times on the four hits and error.
This is the second week in a row WVU has struggled on Friday night. Last week they were no-hit by Oklahoma, before coming back to win the final two games of the series.
Game two of this three-game series is set for tomorrow afternoon at 4:00 p.m.
