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WVU Hosts No. 16 Oklahoma St in Big 12 Home Opener
March 31, 2016 06:13 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team hosts No. 16 Oklahoma State in its Big 12 home opener at Monongalia County Ballpark from April 1-3.
Friday’s series opener, slated for a 6:30 p.m. ET first pitch, is a True Blue game, and all fans are encouraged to wear blue to cheer on the Mountaineers. There will also be a postgame fireworks show, presented by Coca Cola. Saturday’s contest, which begins at 4 p.m., is Family Day. Fans can purchase four tickets and receive a $10 concession voucher for just $25. The series concludes on Sunday, April 3 at 1 p.m. As part of the first Kids’ Day of the year, fans can get autographs from the Mountaineers and run the bases after the game.
After WVU won the only regular season game between the two teams last season, 5-4 in Stillwater, Oklahoma, OSU makes its first visit to Monongalia County Ballpark.The Mountaineers (12-10) will open the weekend with junior right-hander Chad Donato (1-2) on the mound. Senior left-hander Ross Vance (3-1) will start on Saturday, while sophomore righty BJ Myers will get the ball on Sunday in the series finale.
For the Cowboys (18-7), sophomore right-hander Thomas Hatch (2-0) will get the start on Friday, followed by junior righty Trey Cobb (3-3) on Saturday. In Sunday’s finale, freshman right-hander Jensen Elliott (2-1) takes the mound for OSU.
Game Notes | Live Stats: Friday, Saturday, Sunday | Live Video: Friday, Saturday, Sunday | Radio: Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG, Online
TICKETS
Tickets are available for all three games against Oklahoma State. 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 Gate A of Monongalia County Ballpark.
FOLLOWING ALONG
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.
PARKING AND SHUTTLE INFO
There are several new parking and shuttle options for fans to make cheering on the Mountaineers even easier this season.
Free parking will be available for all fans in the new parking lots behind the outfield fence. Lot 1 is located behind the right field wall and adjacent to the clubhouse facility at the ballpark, and lot 2 is located across the street from Gate A.
A limited amount of ADA accessible parking will be available on a first-come, first-served basis for free in the lot closest to Gate A. The lot is located behind the left-center field wall, behind the scoreboard. An ADA parking permit will be required to park in the spots reserved for ADA parking.
Free shuttle service for WVU students will also be offered to each WVU baseball home game this season through WVU Transportation. Student must have a valid WVU Student ID to ride the shuttle.
The shuttle schedule and complete parking information can be found at WVUsports.com.
SCOUTING NO. 16 OKLAHOMA STATENo. 16 Oklahoma State enters the weekend with an 18-7 record and a 7-4 mark on the road. The Cowboys have won five in a row.
OSU is coming off a 5-4 win over No. 15 Arkansas on March 29. Both teams scored three runs in the second inning before the Cowboys notched a run in the seventh and one in the eighth to win it.
Oklahoma State is 3-0 in Big 12 action after a sweep at Kansas State last weekend. The only undefeated team left in conference play, OSU posted a 2-1 win in the opener before back-to-back 5-4 triumphs. Sunday’s win came in the 10th inning.
The Cowboys are ranked No. 16 in the Baseball America and Perfect Game rankings. OSU is also ranked 18th by the NCBWA, 20th in the USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 21 by D1Baseball.com
The Cowboys are led by Josh Holliday, in his fourth season in Stillwater. OSU owns a 145-64 mark under Holliday. In his first three seasons, he has guided Oklahoma State to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, the team’s first Big 12 regular season title and an NCAA Super Regional berth in 2014.
HISTORY VS. THE COWBOYS
West Virginia is 3-9 all-time against Oklahoma State after the teams each won one game last season.
In 2015, WVU won the lone regular season meeting, 5-4 in Stillwater, Oklahoma, in a game that was suspended due to rain. Friday night’s final inning was played Saturday, before weather forced the cancellation of the remaining two games. In the Big 12 Championship, OSU won, 3-0 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Only three games in the series have been played in Morgantown, a 3-0 sweep for OSU in 2014 at Hawley Field. This season’s series marks Oklahoma State’s first visit to Monongalia County Ballpark.
WVU notched a pair of wins in 2013. The first was a 5-4 triumph in the series finale in Stillwater before a 6-5 victory in the Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City.
Prior to WVU joining the Big 12 for the 2013 season, the Cowboys hosted the Mountaineers to open the season in 1996, where OSU won all three games.
ON DECK: WVU FACES MARSHALL IN CHARLESTON, HOSTS EMU
The in-state rivalry between West Virginia and Marshall resumes on Tuesday, April 5 in Charleston. The Mountaineers and Thundering Herd meet for the 66th time, with WVU owning a 41-24 advantage in the series. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. ET at Appalachian Power Park.
WVU returns home the following day for a matchup with Eastern Michigan. First pitch at Monongalia County Ballpark will be at 6:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 6.
LAST TIME OUT: WVU FALLS TO CC
WVU is coming off a pair of midweek defeats to Canisius. The Mountaineers and Golden Griffins went to extra innings in the opener before CC scored two runs in the top of the 10th inning to win it, 7-5. In the series finale on Wednesday, Canisius won, 9-0.
MAZEY IS WVU’S NEWEST MR. 100
Coach Randy Mazey won his 100th game at WVU in the Mountaineers’ 11-6 victory at Kansas on Saturday. Mazey is the fifth coach in program history to eclipse the 100-win mark and the second to accomplish the feat in his first four seasons.
Mazey joins Ira Errett Rodgers (1921-42, 46), Steve Harrick (1948-67), Dale Ramsburgh (1968-94) and Greg Van Zant (1995-2012) with at least 100 wins at WVU. Along with Mazey, only Van Zant won his 100th game in his fourth season. Harrick won his 100 game in his eighth, and Rodgers and Ramsburg reached the milestone in their ninth seasons at WVU.
In his career, Mazey owns a 286-247-2 record, 14 wins shy of reaching 300 in his career. Mazey is 100-87 at WVU.
HARDY GARNERS WVU HONOR
After a career-best outing in WVU’s 11-6 victory at Kansas on March 26, senior Jeff Hardy was named the WVU Student-Athlete of the Week.
Hardy came in and got the final 11 outs of the game to earn his first career save. He entered the game in the sixth inning and allowed no runs on just two hits with a career-best six strikeouts and no walks the remainder of the game. Hardy shut down a Kansas offense that had scored six runs on 11 hits in the first 5.1 innings. As Kansas’ offensive attack had cut WVU’s lead to one at 7-6, Hardy prevented the Jayhawks from getting any closer as the WVU offense extended its lead in the final three innings.
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.
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