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WVU Celebrates Seniors This Weekend
May 11, 2017 06:46 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team plays its final home weekend series of the season when it welcomes Gardner-Webb to Monongalia County Ballpark from May 12-14.
The series begins on Friday, May 12, at 6:30 p.m. ET. Saturday’s first pitch is set for 4 p.m., while Sunday’s game, which is Senior Day, is at 1 p.m.
Prior to Sunday’s contest, the Mountaineers will honor senior first baseman Jackson Cramer, senior reliever Jackson Sigman and student manager JT Heenan. Entering the weekend, Cramer and Sigman have played in a total of 257 games as Mountaineers. In Cramer’s four seasons, and Sigman’s three, WVU has totaled 119 wins, and counting.
The Mountaineers (28-20, 11-10 Big 12) are coming off a 4-2 win on Wednesday night against Penn State at PNC Park. Playing in the first-ever college game at the Pittsburgh Pirates’ ballpark, WVU scored runs in four consecutive innings and benefited from strong pitching. West Virginia is in fourth place in the Big 12, one game out of third place and two games out of second.
The Runnin’ Bulldogs (22-25, 9-12 Big South) come to Morgantown having lost six in a row, all on the road. Gardner-Webb’s trip to WVU caps a seven-game road trip, which began with a 10-4 win at Presbyterian on April 28.
Friday night’s game will feature postgame fireworks, presented by Coca-Cola. Along with Sunday’s Senior Day festivities, fans can play baseball bingo and win WVU prizes. Sunday is also Kids Day, with postgame autographs and running the bases and Mr. Twister’s balloon art and face painting on the party deck.
TICKETS
Tickets are available for all three games against Gardner-Webb, at 1-800-WVU GAME, WVUGAME.com or on gameday at Monongalia County Ballpark.
FOLLOWING ALONG
All three games will be streamed for free on WVUsports.com. Fans can listen to the games on the Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG on various affiliates throughout the state, online at WVUsports.com, on the Mountaineer Gameday App and the TuneInRadio App. Dan Zangrilli and Ernie Galusky will call the action.
Links to the video streams, the radio broadcasts and live stats can be found on the baseball schedule page on WVUsports.com.
Additional behind-the-scenes updates, news and notes from Monongalia County Ballpark 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 parking options for fans to make cheering on the Mountaineers even easier again this season at Monongalia County Ballpark
Free parking will be available for all fans in the 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.
The shuttle service for WVU students will be unavailable for this weekend’s series against Gardner-Webb.
SCOUTING GARDNER-WEBB
Gardner-Webb is 22-25 on the season, 15-12 at home and 7-13 on the road. GWU is 9-12 in Big South action.
The Runnin’ Bulldogs, who close a 10-game road trip at West Virginia, have lost six in a row. Gardner-Webb is coming off a series at Winthrop. The series began with a 7-6 loss, and was followed by back-to-back 3-1 defeats.
Collin Thacker leads the team with a .360 average, 68 hits, 40 RBIs and 13 doubles. Danny Sullivan is second with 54 hits and a .320 batting average, while he has a team-best 16 home runs and a .645 slugging percentage.
On the mound, starter Bradley Hallman has a 2.96 ERA in 12 starts and with a team-best 45 strikeouts in 82.0 innings. Zach Mosay leads the team with six wins, while making 12 starts and posting a 5.07 ERA.
Rusty Stroupe is in his 15th season with the Runnin’ Bulldogs in 2017. He owns a 778-618-2 record after a 37-win campaign a year ago and is the all-time wins leader at GWU.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE RUNNIN’ BULLDOGS
West Virginia and Gardner-Webb meet for the first time this weekend.
WVU owns a 26-27-1 all-time record against current teams in the Big South Conference. The Mountaineers played two Big South opponents in 2016.
The year began with a series win at Charleston Southern, and was followed by a 6-2 home win over Radford later in the season.
ON DECK: HOME FINALE VS. PITT
The Mountaineers close their home slate on Tuesday, May 16, against rival Pitt at Monongalia County Ballpark. First pitch of the Backyard Brawl is set for 6:30 p.m. ET. WVU beat the Panthers in Pittsburgh earlier this year, 8-4. The game is a gold rush, and all fans are encouraged to wear gold. Additionally, fans can play baseball bingo and win WVU prizes.
LAST TIME OUT: WIN AT PNC PARK
Runs in four consecutive innings and solid pitching propelled West Virginia to a 4-2 victory over Penn State on Wednesday night at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. West Virginia scored four runs on seven hits while holding the Nittany Lions to two runs on 10 hits. Both teams committed an error.
- Playing their first-ever game at PNC Park, the Mountaineers scored single runs in the second, third, fourth and fifth innings to come away victorious on the North Shore in Pittsburgh. The game marked WVU’s first at a Pittsburgh Pirates home ballpark since 1998, a 9-8 win over rival Pitt at the old Three Rivers Stadium.
- The Mountaineer pitching staff put together another strong outing, beginning with freshman starter Sam Kessler. The righty allowed one run on five hits with five strikeouts and a walk in 4.0 innings. Freshman Cody Wood followed with 3.1 innings, allowing just one run on five hits with a strikeout. Wood earned the win and improved to 2-0 on the season. Sophomore Braden Zarbnisky closed it out with 1.2 innings of no-hit ball to pick up his team-leading fourth save.
- Offensively, freshman catcher Chase Illig led the team with two hits and drove in two runs, including the eventual game-winner in the fourth inning. Zarbnisky also added a hit and an RBI, extending his hitting streak to a career-best nine games, while junior left fielder Kyle Davis walked twice to extend his reached-base streak to a season-best 18 games.
ZARBNISKY NAMED JOHN OLERUD TWO-WAY PLAYER OF THE YEAR SEMIFINALIST
Sophomore designated hitter/right-handed pitcher Braden Zarbnisky has been named a semifinalist on the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year award watch list, presented by the College Baseball Foundation.
The John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year award is named for the former Washington State University standout who achieved success both as a first baseman and left-handed pitcher during the late 1980s and who was inducted into the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.
Zarbnisky joins Texas Tech’s John McMillon as semifinalists for the award from the Big 12 Conference. The finalists will be narrowed down in the coming weeks, and the award will be presented this summer by the College Baseball Foundation.
QUICK HITS: KEY TEAM NOTES
- West Virginia is celebrating its 125th year of baseball. Founded in 1892, WVU owns an all-time record of 2,123-1,522-19. The Mountaineers are the second-oldest program in the Big 12.
- West Virginia is ranked No. 20 in the NCAA RPI. The Big 12 has six teams in the top 25 and the league has the No. 1 RPI in the nation.
- WVU is 28-20 on the season, 11-8 at home, 14-12 on the road and 3-0 at a neutral site.
- WVU is in fourth place in the Big 12, with an 11-10 record, and won its first four weekend series in conference play. West Virginia is one game behind third-place Oklahoma and two games behind second-place Texas Tech.
- The Mountaineers are 9-6 against top-25 teams, with all but six games coming on the road.
- Sophomore designated hitter/right-handed pitcher Braden Zarbnisky has been named a semifinalist on the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year award watch list, presented by the College Baseball Foundation.
- Senior Jackson Cramer has been named one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award. The award recognizes senior student-athletes who have shown a commitment in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. Fans can vote for Cramer at seniorCLASSaward.com.
- West Virginia played at PNC Park on May 10, recording a 4-2 win over Penn State. The game was WVU’s first at the Pittsburgh Pirates’ ballpark and its first game at the home of the Pirates since 1998, a 9-8 win over rival Pitt at old Three Rivers Stadium.
- Kyle Davis has reached base in a team-high-tying 18 consecutive games, a stretch that included a team-best 12-game hitting streak.
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.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow WVU Baseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and visit WVUsports.com.
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