MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team scored two runs in eighth inning on a squeeze bunt to come back for a 4-3 win on Opening Day at Monongalia County Ballpark on Friday afternoon.
The Mountaineers (8-3) trailed 2-0 early, but with the help of five errors in the final three innings, WVU came back to beat the Monarchs (10-3) with three unearned runs.
WVU scored four runs on seven hits with no errors and ODU was held to three runs on 10 hits with five errors. A crowd of 1,135 saw the Mountaineers’ comeback victory, the fifth-largest crowd for a non-conference game at Monongalia County Ballpark.
After West Virginia tied the score at 2-2 in the sixth inning, junior catcher Ray Guerrini drove in two runs, including the game-winner, on a squeeze bunt in the eighth inning. Guerrini reached on the second ODU error of the inning, which allowed the second WVU run to score.
“Ray’s our team leader, he’s a great bunter,” WVU coach Randy Mazey said. “We kind of figured they would come after him in the strike zone, they didn’t want to walk the bases loaded, so I put all my faith in our oldest, veteran guy, and he came through in spades.”
Sophomore right-hander Conner Dotson earned his third win of the season with 1.2 scoreless innings in relief, allowing just two hits with three strikeouts. Senior righty Blake Smith allowed one run in the ninth inning but tallied his second save of the season.
The Mountaineers were held to just three hits in the first five innings before breaking through in the sixth. Sophomore third baseman Kyle Davis led off the inning with his second single of the day and stole second. He scored when freshman right fielder Darius Hill reached on an error by ODU’s second baseman. Junior first baseman Jackson Cramer drove home Hill with a single, after Hill reached second on a balk and third after a flyout.
WVU loaded the bases in the seventh inning with two outs, but couldn’t score.
In the eighth inning, the two-run rally again started with the leadoff baserunner reaching. Freshman second baseman Cole Austin reached on an error and advanced to third on Cramer’s double. After a strikeout, Guerrini came through with the winning play.
Guerrini executed a perfect squeeze bunt down the first base line. The ODU pitcher fielded the ball but couldn’t execute a clean throw to first to allow Guerrini to reach and Austin and Cramer to score.
With a 4-2 lead headed into the ninth inning, Blake Smith allowed a leadoff triple to Jason McMurray, who scored on a groundout for the final run of the game.
On the mound, junior right-hander Chad Donato earned the start and allowed two runs on nine hits in 6.1 innings. He struck out six and walked just one.
Old Dominion’s lone two runs came in the second inning. A one-out single was followed by an RBI double by McMurray, who scored two batters later on a single.
The series between WVU and ODU continues on Saturday at 3 p.m. before the finale on Sunday at 1 p.m. Tickets are available for both games at the Monongalia County Ballpark ticket office. For fans unable to cheer on the Mountaineers in person, a live video stream and live stats can be found at
WVUsports.com. Additional updates and notes can be found on social media by following and connecting with the team at @WVUBaseball on
Twitter,
Facebook and
Instagram.
NOTES: WVU improved to 8-3 on the year and 5-1 all-time against Old Dominion … Attendance was 1,135, the fifth-largest crowd for a non-conference game in Monongalia County Ballpark history … Sophomore Conner Dotson earned the win and is 3-0 on the year … Senior Blake Smith earned his second save of the year … Sophomore Kyle Davis extended his hitting streak to a team-high nine games, and has reached base in 29 consecutive games, the second-longest streak on the team … Davis has a team-high 15 hits on the year … Freshman Darius Hill’s third-inning double was his team-high sixth double of the year, and he has now doubled in five consecutive games … Hill scored WVU’s second run in the sixth inning, his team-leading 13th run scored … Junior Chad Donato pitched 6.1 innings, allowing two runs on nine hits with six strikeouts and one walk … Junior Ray Guerrini drove in the winning run and is tied for second on the team with eight RBIs on the year.
Season and single game tickets for the 2016 WVU baseball season are on sale now. Fans can join the excitement of WVU baseball and contribute to the home field advantage at Monongalia County Ballpark by calling 1-800-WVU GAME, purchasing tickets at
WVUGAME.com or visiting the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum. More information on season tickets and the 30-game home schedule can be found at
WVUsports.com, while single game ticket information is available
here.
