Box Score MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Junior right-handed starter Alek Manoah struck out 12 batters and the offense scored six runs in the final three innings to lead the West Virginia University baseball team to a 6-2 victory over Kent State in the opening game of a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Monongalia County Ballpark.
 
As Manoah struck out 12, including striking out the side in the sixth and seventh innings, the Mountaineers (7-5) were held hitless into the sixth. Both teams had five hits in the contest, but the Golden Flashes (4-8) committed four errors, and three of West Virginia's six runs were unearned.
 
Manoah reached double-digit strikeouts for the second time in his four starts this season, after he had a career-best 13 at Kennesaw State on Feb. 15 to open the season.
 
In 7.2 innings, Manoah allowed two runs, both in the eighth inning, on five hits with 12 strikeouts and a walk. He earned his second win of the season to improve to 2-1.
 
Manoah struck out the side in the sixth and seventh innings and added two strikeouts in the third and fifth. He struck out nine of 10 batters he faced in a stretch from the fourth-seventh innings.
 
WVU was held hitless until a two-RBI triple by senior right fielder Darius Hill in the sixth inning, and the Mountaineers added a run in the seventh and three in the eighth.
 
Hill and junior center fielder Brandon White each had two RBIs, while sophomore left fielder Paul McIntosh had a career-best two hits, an RBI and two runs scored.
 
The Mountaineers broke through with two runs on their first hit of the game in the sixth inning. Sophomore second baseman Tyler Doanes reached on a throwing error to lead off the inning, and senior catcher Ivan Gonzalez walked to put two on. Hill then lined a hard-hit triple down the left-field line to score Doanes and Gonzalez. It was WVU's first hit of the game and gave the home team a 2-0 lead.
 
West Virginia added an unearned run in the seventh inning to make it 3-0. McIntosh led off the frame with a double to center, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt and scored when Doanes reached on a fielding error.
 
Kent State scored its lone runs of the game in the eighth, beginning with a leadoff home run by Patrick Ferguson. The Golden Flashes made it 2-0 on a sacrifice fly before junior right-hander Sam Kessler came on and got a strikeout on four pitches to end the inning.
 
WVU answered with three runs, all with two outs, on three hits in the bottom of the eighth to extend its lead to 6-2. The first run came on an RBI single by McIntosh that scored senior third baseman Andrew Zitel. White then followed with a single up the middle that scored junior first baseman Kevin Brophy and McIntosh. The final run of the inning was unearned, thanks to a throwing error by the center fielder.
 
Sophomore right-hander Tristen Hudson pitched a scoreless ninth inning, with two strikeouts.
 
The two teams will play the second game of the series as part of today's doubleheader, before the series concludes on Sunday, at 1 p.m. ET, at Monongalia County Ballpark. Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com or on game day at Monongalia County Ballpark. Admission for WVU students is free with a valid student I.D.
 
Every game will be streamed live for free on WVUsports.com/Watch and the WVU Gameday App, while fans also can watch the stream live via Roku and Apple TV by searching for the "West Virginia Mountaineers" channel. Fans can listen to the games on the Mountaineer Sports Network from Learfield IMG College over the air on 'The Ticket,' WMMN-FM 95.7 in Morgantown and AM-920 in Fairmont-Clarksburg. Live stats for all three games can be found at WVUsports.com/Stats. Direct links to video and radio streams and live stats are available on the baseball schedule page on WVUsports.com.
 
Notes: West Virginia improved to 7-5 on the season and 3-0 at home … WVU is playing its third doubleheader in the first four weeks of the season … Alek Manoah struck out 12, his second double-digit strikeout game of the season … Paul McIntosh had a career-high two hits.
 
Single game tickets, season tickets and mini-packages for the 2019 season are on sale now. Fans can join the excitement of WVU baseball and support the Mountaineers by purchasing tickets at WVUGAME.com, calling 1-800-WVU GAME or visiting the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum.
 
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