HONOLULU – Senior left hander Ross Vance tossed another gem on the mound to lead the West Virginia University baseball team to a 4-1 victory at Hawaii in the second game of the series on Friday night in Honolulu.

 

Postgame Video: Coach Mazey | Senior Ross  Vance

 

Vance improved to 3-0 on the season to lead the Mountaineers (6-2) with another outing allowing just one run to begin the season. At the plate, WVU’s hitters put together a balanced attack to score a run in the first and fifth innings before a pair in the sixth against the Rainbow Warriors (5-6).

 

WVU scored four runs on 11 hits with one error, while UH was held to one run on six hits with an error in front of 2,911 fans at Les Murakami Stadium.

 

“I’m happy with how we came back from yesterday,” coach Randy Mazey said. “Good teams can come back from stuff like that and play a good game right after they play a bad game. We had 11 hits and only scored four runs, but I thought we played well. We pitched well, we played good defense and we swung the bats pretty well.”

 

Vance pitched seven innings for the second consecutive start. He allowed one run on four hits with four strikeouts and two walks. The senior faces 27 batters and threw 108 pitches.

 

In relief, freshman righty Michael Grove picked up where Vance left and threw the final two innings to earn his first career save while striking out three.

 

Offensively, freshman left fielder Kyle Gray and junior first baseman Jackson Cramer had two hits, an RBI and a run scored. Freshman right fielder Darius Hill and senior center fielder KC Huth both had a hit, an RBI and a run.

 

It was Hill’s sacrifice fly in the fifth that plated Gray, the game’s winning run.

 

 

The Mountaineers wasted no time getting on the board with a run in the first inning. Hill doubled, and with two outs scored on Cramer’s single.

 

Vance shut UH down in order in the second and faced just four batters in the first and third innings before Hawaii scored their lone run of the game in the fourth. The Rainbow Warriors hit three consecutive triples, with Casey Ryan’s hit through the left side scoring Alex Fitchett.

 

 

West Virginia answered right back though, with a run in the fifth and a pair of runs in the sixth.

 

In the fifth, Hill hit a sacrifice fly to left field to score freshman left fielder Kyle Gray.

 

The sixth inning began with a leadoff double by Cramer. Two outs later, Huth singled to score Cramer, and Gray followed with a triple to score Huth.

 

The 4-1 advantage was all that Vance would need on the mound. After allowing the run in the fourth, he shut Hawaii down in order in the fifth and sixth. A hit batter and a walk got Vance in some trouble in the seventh, but a fielder’s choice to get the lead runner and a fly out to right field ended the UH scoring threat.

 

Grove pitched the final two innings to earn his first career save. He got into a bit of trouble in the eighth inning, his first on the mound, but got out of it. Grove pitched two innings and allowed no runs on two hits with three strikeouts.

 

The four game series continues on Saturday at 11:35 p.m. ET/6:35 p.m. HT at UH’s Les Murakami Stadium. The series concludes at 6:05 p.m. ET/1:05 p.m. HT on Sunday. Live stats and a radio feed can be found at HawaiiAthletics.com. Additional updates and notes from the team’s trip to Hawai’i will be available on social media by following and connecting with the team at @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

 

NOTES: WVU improved to 6-2 on the year and 2-0 following a loss … WVU is 1-1 all-time against Hawaii ... Junior Jackson Cramer has reached base in 28 consecutive contests, the longest streak on the team … Sophomore Kyle Davis has reached base 26 games in a row … Senior KC Huth, sophomore Kyle Davis and freshman Kyle Gray extended their team-high hit streaks to six games … Huth’s one hit gives him a team-high 11 on the season … Huth and Hill each had an RBI and continue to lead the team with eight RBIs on the year … Vance pitched seven innings, allowing one run on four hits with four strikeouts and a walk … Freshman Michael Grove earned his first career save with two innings of work, allowing two hits and no runs.

 

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.

 

For more information on the Mountaineers, follow WVU Baseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.