MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – After taking a perfect game into the eighth inning in Saturday’s win, West Virginia University sophomore right-handed pitcher Michael Grove has been named the Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Week and one of the National Players of the Week by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
A Wheeling, West Virginia, native, Grove is the first Mountaineer to be named a player of the week by either the Big 12 or Collegiate Baseball this season. The Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honor is also the first of his career, after he earned Newcomer of the Week accolades twice as a freshman in 2016.
In WVU’s 8-0 win over Kansas on Saturday, April 8, Grove was dominant on the mound, retiring the first 23 batters he faced. He did not allow a baserunner until giving up a two-out single in the eighth inning and improved to 3-1 on the season.
In 8.0 innings pitched, Grove struck out a season-best 12 batters, one shy of tying his career high. Throwing 109 pitches, he did not allow a run and gave up just one hit with no walks.
With his 12 strikeouts, Grove has struck out at least eight batters in four of his last five starts. While improving to 3-1 on the year, Grove had his third consecutive quality start of the season and sixth of his career.
Along with his Big 12 and Collegiate Baseball honors, Grove was named the WVU Student-Athlete of the Week today.
Winners of 11 of their last 14 games, the Mountaineers (19-11) have four games this week against ranked teams, beginning at No. 21 Maryland on Tuesday. WVU then returns home for a three-game series against No. 2 TCU at Monongalia County Ballpark, from April 14-16. Tickets for the TCU series are still available, at 1-800-WVU GAME,
WVUGAME.com or at the Mountaineer Ticket Office in the WVU Coliseum or on gameday at Monongalia County Ballpark.
There are multiple promotions set for all three games against TCU, which can be found on
WVUsports.com/promotions. Additionally, Friday night’s game against TCU will be broadcast nationally on FCS Atlantic, the first televised game in Monongalia County Ballpark history, while Sunday’s game will be broadcast locally on the Nexstar Media Group’s network of statewide affiliates. Links to live streams, radio broadcasts and live stats for each game can be found on the
baseball schedule page on WVUsports.com.
Single game tickets, flex plan tickets and mini packs for the 2017 WVU baseball season are on sale now. Fans can purchase tickets by calling 1-800-WVU GAME, going to
WVUGAME.com or visiting the Mountaineer Ticket Office in the WVU Coliseum. The 2017 schedule is available on
WVUsports.com.
