MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (May 8, 2024) – West Virginia came out scorching hot, scoring 12 runs in the first two innings that would lead to an 18-7 win over Penn State in seven innings.
In the bottom of the first, Logan Suave started the scoring with a leadoff home run. Sam White would add to, singling to score Kyle West and JJ Wetherholt. Still before recording an out, Brodie Kresser would launch a grand slam that would make it 7-0. Two batters later, Skylar King hit a solo home run to make it eight runs scored in the first for the Mountaineers.
The scoring would not stop as Reed Chumley and White would hit back-to-back home runs to lead off the bottom of the second inning. King would pick up his second RBI with a sac fly, scoring Kresser, and Suave would drive in Ben Lumsden with a single as West Virginia would open up a 12-0 lead after just two innings.
Penn State would respond in the third. Bobby Marsh got the Nittany Lions on the board with an RBI single. That would be followed up with another single from Tayven Kelley that brought in two more runs to make the score 12-3 with two outs.
Chase Meyer got the start for West Virginia but would be pulled after 2.2 innings pitched and replaced by Bryce Amos. Meyer let up four hits, walked five, and recorded five strikeouts. His final line would also include five runs allowed, all earned.
Still in the third, Amos’s first pitch went over the head of Suave that would bring in another run. Joe Jaconski followed that up with a double off of Amos to drive in 2 more runs. A single from J.T. Marr would drive in another run in the third and end Amos’s day before he could record an out. Maxx Yehl would come in to end the top of the third, but not before Penn State made it a 12-7 game.
Grant Hussey started the scoring in the bottom of the third inning with a two-out high fly ball into shallow center field that Penn State was unable to track down. The ball found turf and drove in Chumley from first. Kresser drove Hussey home with a single and the next at-bat, Lumsden drove him home with his own RBI single to extend the Mountaineers’ lead to 15-7.
After a scoreless fourth inning for Penn State, JJ Wetherholt made it 4 straight innings with a run for West Virginia when he recorded his third hit of the night, this one a 439-foot solo home run to right field. It’s the fourth homerun for the shortstop this season.
West Virginia would get its final two runs of the game to extend their lead to 18-7 in the fifth from two more hits by Hussey and Kresser and a Ellis Garcia triple that drove both the runners in. Garcia was a pinch hitter for King. Kresser finished the night 4-4 at the plate with 5 RBI including a grand slam.
Maxx Yehl, Tommy Beam, and Aidan Smith would combine for 4.1 scoreless innings to close out the game for the Mountaineers. Chase Meyer was credited for his first win of the season, now 1-1 on the year.
The Mountaineers improve to 29-18 on the season and will continue conference play at home against Kansas State starting on Friday, May 10 at 6:30 p.m. It will be the final home series of the regular season for West Virginia.
