MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – For the third time in five games at home this season, the West Virginia University baseball team played extra innings in a 7-5 loss to Canisius on Tuesday evening at Monongalia County Ballpark.
The Mountaineers (12-9) and Golden Griffins (10-13) went back-and-forth in front of 1,212 fans in the opening game of a two-game series before the visitors scored two runs in the top of the 10th inning to win it.
WVU scored five runs on 12 hits with two errors, while CC notched seven runs on 10 hits with a pair of errors.
Both teams had chances to win it late, as Canisius stranded 15 runners on base and West Virginia left 11 runners on. CC left the bases loaded in the ninth and 10th innings, while WVU stranded a pair in the ninth and three in the 10th.
“I thought we had good at-bats, and offensively we did ok, it just seemed like the pitchers were afraid to throw it over the plate,” WVU coach Randy Mazey said. “If you’re a pitcher, you can’t get people out without them hitting the ball. I think we tried to get through the whole game without them ever hitting the ball.”
Sophomore right-hander Conner Dotson took the loss, allowing one run in the 10th inning. In 1.0 innings, he struck out two, walked two and gave up no hits. Dotson’s strikeout with the bases loaded in the ninth inning helped send the game into extra innings.
Dotson’s work on the mound came after junior right-hander Jackson Sigman pitched 3.1 strong innings in relief. He allowed three hits, struck out three and walked one.
Sophomore righty BJ Myers got the start after he missed Sunday’s start due to snow cancelling the series finale at Kansas. Myers pitched 2.0 innings and allowed one hit with three strikeouts and a walk.
At the plate for the Mountaineers, sophomore Kyle Davis had two hits and scored three of WVU’s five runs. Freshmen outfielders Kyle Gray and Darius Hill both had two hits and an RBI.
WVU got on the board in the third inning. With two outs, Davis walked and scored on a double to left center by Gray.
Canisius responded with three runs in the top of the fourth off of freshman right-hander Braden Zarbnisky, also with two outs. A single scored one before a triple plated two.
The Mountaineers answered right back though, with two runs in the bottom of the inning to tie the game at 3-3. The rally began when freshman second baseman Marques Inman walked and junior first baseman Jackson Cramer doubled him home. The inning’s second run came when freshman catcher Ivan Vera drove in his first career run with a sacrifice fly to score Cramer.
The Golden Griffins jumped right back with two runs in the top of the fifth inning. The two-run, two-hit rally came with two outs and began with a bases-loaded walk and concluded with a single.
West Virginia cut the deficit to 5-4 with a run of its own in the bottom of the fifth. Davis led off with a single and scored on Inman’s sacrifice fly.
WVU tied the ballgame at 5-5 in the seventh inning. Davis again led off with a single and scored on Hill’s double down the left field line that landed just out of the reach of the CC left fielder and bounced to the wall.
In the ninth inning, the Golden Griffins stranded the bases loaded. CC used a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases with two outs, but Dotson, who came in one batter earlier, got a strikeout to end it.
In the bottom half, a leadoff single, followed by a fielder’s choice and a walk, put runners on the corners with two outs. With the game-winning run at third base, junior pinch-hitter Shaun Wood grounded out to send the game into extra innings.
In the top of the 10th inning, Canisius rallied with two outs and nobody on to score two runs on one hit with four walks. The Golden Griffins took a 7-5 lead into the bottom of the inning.
WVU loaded the bases with two outs on a walk, a hit by pitch and a single, but Davis fouled out to end the ballgame.
The series between WVU and CC concludes on Wednesday at 3 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 1-800-WVU GAME, purchasing tickets at
WVUGAME.com or visiting the Mountaineer Ticket Office at Gate A of Monongalia County Ballpark.
For fans unable to cheer on the Mountaineers in person at Monongalia County Ballpark, there are several ways to tune in live. A live video stream and live stats can be found at
WVUSports.com. Jeff Culhane and Ernie Galusky will call the action on the Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG on various affiliates throughout the state. The radio broadcast can also be found online at
WVUsports.com or on the TuneIn Radio App and the Mountaineer Gameday App. 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 falls to 12-9 on the season, 3-2 at home and 1-2 in extra inning contests … Junior Jackson Cramer’s fourth-inning single extended his reached base streak to a team-high and career-best 41 games … Senior KC Huth extended his hitting streak to a team-high five games with a single in the second inning … Freshman Ivan Vera recorded his first career RBI with a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning.
Single game and flex plan 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.
