MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Winners of four of its last five games, the West Virginia University baseball team hosts Virginia Tech on Tuesday, May 3, at 6:30 p.m. ET.

 

The 87th meeting between the two teams will be the first ever Stripe the Park at Monongalia County Ballpark. Fans sitting in even sections are encouraged to wear blue, and fans sitting in odd sections should wear gold. Complete details about Stripe the Park can be found at WVUSports.com/StripeThePark.

 

Before the game, the WVU men’s basketball team will host Hoops ‘n Home Runs. The tailgate will take place in the parking lot outside the center field fence and begin at 4:30 p.m. Food and beverages will be available, and fans will receive a voucher for $2 off their ticket to the 6:30 p.m. game.

 

The Mountaineers (23-19, 8-9 Big 12) are coming off a series win against Baylor. Junior Chad Donato fired a two-hit complete game shutout in WVU’s 10-0 win on Friday and senior Ross Vance followed with a complete game of his own in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, a 5-1 win as West Virginia secured the series victory.

 

Tuesday concludes a five game roadtrip for the Hokies (15-30, 5-19 ACC). VT won the first two games of the roadtrip, 11-10 at Liberty and 5-0 at Boston College before 2-0 and 4-1 losses at BC to conclude the weekend series.

 

Freshman right-hander Braden Zarbnisky (1-0, 4.50 ERA) will make his third career start for the Mountaineers. He pitched 3.0 innings in each of his first two starts and has yet to allow an earned run.

 

Zarbnisky will go up against sophomore righty Nick Anderson (0-0, 7.36). Anderson has appeared in eight games this season with one start. He has pitched 11.0 innings and allowed nine runs on 15 hits.

 

Tickets are available for Tuesday’s game against Virginia Tech. 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.

 

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, courtesy of Coca-Cola, 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.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.

 

Virginia Tech comes to Morgantown with a 15-30 record and a 5-19 mark in ACC play. The Hokies are 9-13 at home and 5-15 on the road. VT has lost two in a row and seven of its last 10.

 

Virginia Tech is coming off a series loss at Boston College. The Hokies won the series opener, 5-0 thanks to a three-run homer by Joe Freiday, Jr. VT lost Saturday’s contest, 2-0, before BC scored four runs early to win the finale, 4-1.

 

In last week’s midweek outing, Virginia Tech won at Liberty, 11-10. The Hokies trailed 4-0 early and 10-2 in the seventh, but an eight-run eighth inning propelled VT to a comeback victory.

 

The Hokies are led by Patrick Mason, in his third season in Blacksburg, Virginia. He owns a 62-86-1 record at Virginia Tech. He has been at Virginia Tech since 2010 and took over as head coach in 2013.

 

Former Big East rivals, West Virginia and Virginia Tech have met 86 times. WVU trails the all-time series 32-53-1 but is 17-15 in home contests. Under coach Randy Mazey, the Mountaineers are 1-1 against the Hokies, with a 4-3 win in 2014 and a 13-3 loss last year.

 

WVU and Virginia Tech met for the first time in 1905. The Hokies won the first meeting, 6-9 in Morgantown. West Virginia got its first win in the third game of the series, in 1922. The Mountaineers won both games that year, 3-2 and 11-7, both in Blacksburg, Virginia.

 

In 2014, West Virginia beat Virginia Tech 4-3 in Princeton, W.Va. The Mountaineers used three different comebacks, including a two-run eighth inning to secure the victory. Jacob Rice drove in the game winning run with a two-run double in the eighth inning after the Hokies at taken a 3-2 lead in the top of the inning.

 

Last year, Virginia Tech posted a 13-3 win in Blacksburg, Virginia. The Hokies used four multi-run innings and nine walks as WVU was held to three runs on nine hits. Current Mountaineer Shaun Corso had two hits and an RBI, while Jeff Hardy got the start and suffered his first loss of the season.

 

WVU remains at home to host Texas from May 6-8. The series begins on Friday, May 6 at 6:30 p.m. ET, and there will be postgame fireworks, presented by Coca-Cola. Saturday is Family Day, where fans can purchase four tickets and get a $10 concession voucher for just $25. Sunday is Kids’ Day and Mother’s Day. At the 1 p.m. series finale, any mom that brings a child to the game will receive a $3 ticket at the gate. Following the game, kids will have the opportunity to run the bases and get autographs from their favorite players.

 

WVU is coming off a series win over Baylor. Junior Chad Donato pitched a complete game, two-hit shutout in Friday’s 10-0 victory. After Baylor won the second game of the series, 8-6 in Saturday’s opening game of a doubleheader, senior Ross Vance threw a complete game to lead WVU to a 5-1 win.

 

WVU opened the series with a 10-0 win on Friday behind Donato’s two-hit, complete game shutout. The Mountaineers 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 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. 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 Mountaineers secured the series win on Saturday as senior left-hander Ross Vance threw his first complete game of the season and fourth of his career in a 5-1 victory. After a ninth-inning rally fell short in the opening game of Saturday’s doubleheader, the Mountaineers answered by scoring two runs early and adding three late insurance runs to secure their third Big 12 series win of the season. Vance held Baylor to one unearned run on seven hits with nine strikeouts and just one walk. Cramer had his fifth multi-hit game in the last six contests and drove in more than one run for the third time in the last four games. In Saturday’s win, he accounted for four of WVU’s five runs, with two RBIs and two runs scored on two hits with a walk.

 

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.

 

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