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Donato’s Two-Hit Shutout Leads WVU
April 29, 2016 10:38 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Junior right-hander Chad Donato threw a two-hit, complete game shutout to lead the West Virginia University baseball team to a 10-0 victory in the series opener against Baylor on Friday evening.
In front of 1,229 fans at Monongalia County Ballpark, the Mountaineers (22-18, 7-8 Big 12) complimented Donato’s gem on the mound with 10 runs on 12 hits, including junior catcher Ray Guerrini’s fifth home run of the season.
Donato (2-3) pitched his second career complete game and WVU’s first of the season. He held the Bears (19-23, 5-11) to just two hits with nine strikeouts and no walks. The sophomore threw 87 pitches and faced more than three batters in an inning just three times. BU did not advance a runner past first base all night.
“That’s three games in a row where we’ve played very well,” WVU coach Randy Mazey said. “We pitched well, played very good defense and another double-digit hit game. I think we’ve got things rolling pretty well right now. Great win tonight, Chad finally got rewarded the way he’s been pitching all year. That’s not unlike what he’s done almost every time out, but it was good to get him some run support. Up and down the dugout, everyone feels good for him because he’s had such hard luck. He’s been doing that every time out and everybody’s been hoping for him, rooting for him. Finally he got rewarded.”
WVU’s offense was just as strong as Donato was on the mound. Eight Mountaineers had at least one hit and eight scored one or more run.
The offensive attack was headlined by Guerrini’s home run in a five-run fifth inning. He had two hits with two RBIs and a run scored. Fellow junior Jackson Cramer was 3-3 with four RBIs. He drove in at least one run in all but one at-bat.
The WVU scoring began with a run in the second inning on a groundout by freshman second baseman Cole Austin. It continued with three runs in the third to give the Mountaineers a 4-0 lead.
The inning began with back-to-back bunt singles. With the bases loaded after a one-out walk, freshman third baseman Ivan Vera reached on a fielder’s choice to score one run with the help of an error. Cramer then singled up the middle to score Vera and freshman right fielder Darius Hill. Vera’s run was the first of his three runs scored.
WVU blew the game open with five runs in the fifth to extend its lead to 9-0. With two runners on, Cramer singled to clear the bases.
That was followed by Guerrini’s fifth home run of the season and eighth of his career. The long ball just had enough distance to clear the wall in left field and landed in the visitor’s bullpen.
Austin followed with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly for the final run of the inning.
The Mountaineers scored their final run of the game in the seventh with a bases-loaded walk. Freshman shortstop Jimmy Galusky drew the five-pitch walk to score freshman pinch hitter Marques Inman.
Donato finished strong, retiring the final 12 batters. He threw just eight pitches in the eighth inning and nine in the ninth.
Due to potential inclement weather in the Morgantown area, the schedule for the rest of the series has been adjusted. Saturday’s first pitch has been moved up to Noon, from 4 p.m. Sunday’s start time remains scheduled for 1 p.m. at this time. Should the weather forecast necessitate additional changes, fans are encouraged to stay tuned to WVUSports.com. Complete information about the series, including ticket information and how to watch and listen online and on the radio can be found here.
NOTES: WVU improves to 22-18 on the season and 7-8 in Big 12 play … WVU has won three in a row and improved to 5-5 all-time against Baylor … WVU improved to 17-6 when scoring before its opponent … Junior Ray Guerrini hit his fifth home run of the season and eighth of his career … Sophomore Chad Donato pitched his second career complete game and the first for WVU this season … Donato allowed two hits with nine strikeouts and no walks in 9.0 innings while throwing 87 pitches.
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 Gate A of Monongalia County Ballpark. More information on single game tickets and can be found at WVUsports.com, while flex plan ticket information is available here.
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