Sunday, April 21
Morgantown, W.Va.
1:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
vs
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Kansas
Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
No. 20 Mountaineers Host Kansas
April 18, 2019 05:26 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The No. 20 West Virginia University baseball team continues Big 12 play against Kansas at Monongalia County Ballpark from April 19-21.
The series begins on Friday, at 6:30 p.m. ET, while Saturday's first pitch is set for 4 p.m. The series concludes on Sunday at 1 p.m. With the threat of inclement weather in the Morgantown area this weekend, fans are encouraged to stay tuned to WVUsports.com and @WVUbaseball on Twitter for the latest updates on this weekend's schedule.
Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME or on game day at Monongalia County Ballpark. Admission for WVU students is free with a valid student I.D.
Friday is Friday Night Happy Hour, with half-off beverages available from 5:30-6:30 p.m., and all fans can play Baseball Bingo to win prizes. Additionally, all fans will have a chance to enter to win an autographed Coach Randy Mazey jersey. Saturday is Family Day, where fans can purchase four tickets and receive a $10 concession voucher for just $25. The first 300 fans to Saturday's game will get a free WVU baseball hat, courtesy of WVU Medicine. The weekend concludes on Sunday with the third of four trading card giveaways, courtesy of United Bank, to the first 250 kids, 16 and under. Sunday also is Kids Day, presented by WVU Medicine, which features a Kids Zone, inflatables and Mr. Twister's Balloon Art and Face Painting, and kids can run the bases after the game.
The Mountaineers (22-13, 6-6 Big 12) have won eight of their last 10 games and are coming off a series win over No. 11 Texas Tech, their third consecutive series win over a top-25 opponent. WVU is ranked for the first time this season and comes in as high as No. 20 in this week's D1Baseball poll, its highest national ranking since 1982.
The Jayhawks (19-16, 4-8 Big 12) are coming off a series win over Oklahoma State and have won four of their last five games.
Both teams did not play a midweek contest. WVU's game at Penn State on Wednesday was canceled due to inclement weather, while KU did not have a midweek game scheduled.
Two junior right-handers will get the ball in Friday's opener, as West Virginia's Alek Manoah (5-2, 2.08 ERA) faces Kansas' Ryan Cyr (2-4, 6.84 ERA). Sophomore left-hander Jackson Wolf toes the rubber for WVU on Saturday against KU junior righty Ryan Zeferjahn (3-2, 3.58 ERA). In Sunday's finale, Mountaineer junior right-hander Kade Strowd (4-3, 3.61 ERA) gets the ball against Jayhawk freshman lefty Eli Davis (3-3, 5.81 ERA).
Statistically, West Virginia's pitching staff is No. 5 nationally with 6.87 hits allowed per nine innings, No. 16 with a 3.26 ERA and 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings and No. 27 with a 1.26 WHIP. The Mountaineers also rank No. 22 in the NCAA with 72 stolen bases on the season.
Individually, Manoah is No. 10 in the country with 80 strikeouts and No. 24 with a 0.87 WHIP, while he also leads the Big 12 with 11.87 strikeouts per nine innings and is second in the league with 5.64 hits allowed per nine innings. Junior center fielder Brandon White is No. 24 in the NCAA with 0.61 stolen bases per game and senior right fielder Darius Hill is No. 30 with 14 doubles.
FOLLOWING ALONG
There are a number of ways to follow along with this weekend's action, with Dan Zangrilli and Ernie Galusky on the call.
SCOUTING KANSAS
Kansas is 19-16 on the season and 4-8 in Big 12 play. The Jayhawks are 4-4 at home, 4-11 on the road and 11-1 at a neutral site. KU comes to Morgantown after a series win over Oklahoma State last weekend. After a 27-6 loss in the opener, Kansas won the next two, 5-4 and 7-6 in 11 innings.
Jaxx Groshans leads the team with a .333 batting average, 40 hits, 11 home runs, 34 RBIs and a .650 slugging percentage in 120 at-bats. Jonah Ulane paces the pitching staff with a 3.00 ERA in 13 appearances and 18.0 innings pitched. Blake Goldsberry has a team-best four wins and two saves.
In his 17th season with the Jayhawks, coach Ritch Price is 728-704-4 in his career and 511-476-3 in Lawrence. The winningest coach in program history, Price has led KU to three NCAA Tournaments and has coached 103 All-Conference selections.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE JAYHAWKS
West Virginia is 10-9 all-time against Kansas after a series loss last year in Lawrence. The Mountaineers are 6-3 at home, 3-5 on the road and 1-1 at the Big 12 Championship against the Jayhawks. All 16 meetings have come since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2013.
Last year in Lawrence, WVU won the opener, 21-3, on May 4, before a 13-3 loss the next day. KU won the series finale, 5-2. In the series opener, WVU scored 21 runs on 23 hits, as 11 batters had at least one hit. Seven Mountaineers had multiple hits and seven drove in at least two runs. WVU's 21 runs and 18-run victory were both program-records in a Big 12 Conference game.
LAST TIME OUT: ANOTHER TOP-25 SERIES WIN
WVU notched its third consecutive series win over a top-25 team with a pair of victories over No. 11 Texas Tech, from April 12-14, at Monongalia County Ballpark.
ON DECK: WVU HOSTS PENN STATE
The Mountaineers welcome Penn State to Morgantown on Tuesday, April 23, at 7 p.m. It is a Dollar Night, with tickets and select concession items available for just $1, and a Gold Rush. Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME, at the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum or on game day at Monongalia County Ballpark.
Single game tickets and flex plan 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.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow WVU Baseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The series begins on Friday, at 6:30 p.m. ET, while Saturday's first pitch is set for 4 p.m. The series concludes on Sunday at 1 p.m. With the threat of inclement weather in the Morgantown area this weekend, fans are encouraged to stay tuned to WVUsports.com and @WVUbaseball on Twitter for the latest updates on this weekend's schedule.
Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME or on game day at Monongalia County Ballpark. Admission for WVU students is free with a valid student I.D.
Friday is Friday Night Happy Hour, with half-off beverages available from 5:30-6:30 p.m., and all fans can play Baseball Bingo to win prizes. Additionally, all fans will have a chance to enter to win an autographed Coach Randy Mazey jersey. Saturday is Family Day, where fans can purchase four tickets and receive a $10 concession voucher for just $25. The first 300 fans to Saturday's game will get a free WVU baseball hat, courtesy of WVU Medicine. The weekend concludes on Sunday with the third of four trading card giveaways, courtesy of United Bank, to the first 250 kids, 16 and under. Sunday also is Kids Day, presented by WVU Medicine, which features a Kids Zone, inflatables and Mr. Twister's Balloon Art and Face Painting, and kids can run the bases after the game.
The Mountaineers (22-13, 6-6 Big 12) have won eight of their last 10 games and are coming off a series win over No. 11 Texas Tech, their third consecutive series win over a top-25 opponent. WVU is ranked for the first time this season and comes in as high as No. 20 in this week's D1Baseball poll, its highest national ranking since 1982.
The Jayhawks (19-16, 4-8 Big 12) are coming off a series win over Oklahoma State and have won four of their last five games.
Both teams did not play a midweek contest. WVU's game at Penn State on Wednesday was canceled due to inclement weather, while KU did not have a midweek game scheduled.
Two junior right-handers will get the ball in Friday's opener, as West Virginia's Alek Manoah (5-2, 2.08 ERA) faces Kansas' Ryan Cyr (2-4, 6.84 ERA). Sophomore left-hander Jackson Wolf toes the rubber for WVU on Saturday against KU junior righty Ryan Zeferjahn (3-2, 3.58 ERA). In Sunday's finale, Mountaineer junior right-hander Kade Strowd (4-3, 3.61 ERA) gets the ball against Jayhawk freshman lefty Eli Davis (3-3, 5.81 ERA).
Statistically, West Virginia's pitching staff is No. 5 nationally with 6.87 hits allowed per nine innings, No. 16 with a 3.26 ERA and 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings and No. 27 with a 1.26 WHIP. The Mountaineers also rank No. 22 in the NCAA with 72 stolen bases on the season.
Individually, Manoah is No. 10 in the country with 80 strikeouts and No. 24 with a 0.87 WHIP, while he also leads the Big 12 with 11.87 strikeouts per nine innings and is second in the league with 5.64 hits allowed per nine innings. Junior center fielder Brandon White is No. 24 in the NCAA with 0.61 stolen bases per game and senior right fielder Darius Hill is No. 30 with 14 doubles.
FOLLOWING ALONG
There are a number of ways to follow along with this weekend's action, with Dan Zangrilli and Ernie Galusky on the call.
- The games 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 on various affiliates throughout the state, while fans across the country can tune into the broadcast online at WVUsports.com/Watch and on the WVU Gameday and TuneIn Radio Apps.
- Live stats 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.
- Additional behind-the-scenes updates, news and notes can be found on social media by following and connecting with the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @WVUBaseball.
SCOUTING KANSAS
Kansas is 19-16 on the season and 4-8 in Big 12 play. The Jayhawks are 4-4 at home, 4-11 on the road and 11-1 at a neutral site. KU comes to Morgantown after a series win over Oklahoma State last weekend. After a 27-6 loss in the opener, Kansas won the next two, 5-4 and 7-6 in 11 innings.
Jaxx Groshans leads the team with a .333 batting average, 40 hits, 11 home runs, 34 RBIs and a .650 slugging percentage in 120 at-bats. Jonah Ulane paces the pitching staff with a 3.00 ERA in 13 appearances and 18.0 innings pitched. Blake Goldsberry has a team-best four wins and two saves.
In his 17th season with the Jayhawks, coach Ritch Price is 728-704-4 in his career and 511-476-3 in Lawrence. The winningest coach in program history, Price has led KU to three NCAA Tournaments and has coached 103 All-Conference selections.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE JAYHAWKS
West Virginia is 10-9 all-time against Kansas after a series loss last year in Lawrence. The Mountaineers are 6-3 at home, 3-5 on the road and 1-1 at the Big 12 Championship against the Jayhawks. All 16 meetings have come since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2013.
Last year in Lawrence, WVU won the opener, 21-3, on May 4, before a 13-3 loss the next day. KU won the series finale, 5-2. In the series opener, WVU scored 21 runs on 23 hits, as 11 batters had at least one hit. Seven Mountaineers had multiple hits and seven drove in at least two runs. WVU's 21 runs and 18-run victory were both program-records in a Big 12 Conference game.
LAST TIME OUT: ANOTHER TOP-25 SERIES WIN
WVU notched its third consecutive series win over a top-25 team with a pair of victories over No. 11 Texas Tech, from April 12-14, at Monongalia County Ballpark.
- Manoah tossed a four-hit, complete-game shutout with a career-high 15 strikeouts and no walks to lead WVU to a series-opening, 2-0 victory on April 12. Offensively, the Mountaineers scored two two-out runs, on RBI singles by junior first baseman Marques Inman in the first inning and sophomore designated hitter Paul McIntosh in the third. Manoah's outing earned him several honors, including Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.
- A walk-off walk in front of a record-breaking crowd lifted West Virginia to the series win the next day, with a 4-3 victory on April 13. In front of 3,494 fans, the largest home crowd in program history, Inman drew a four-pitch walk with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning to bring in the winning run. WVU took a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but TTU rallied with a run in the fourth and two in the fifth to take a 3-2 lead before West Virginia answered in the bottom of the fifth to tie it at 3-3. Inman and senior third baseman Ivan Gonzalez each had two hits and two RBIs in the win, while four pitchers held Tech to three runs on nine hits.
- West Virginia was shut out in the series, finale on April 14, 3-0. The Mountaineers were held to two hits as the Red Raiders scored two in the fifth and one in the eighth.
ON DECK: WVU HOSTS PENN STATE
The Mountaineers welcome Penn State to Morgantown on Tuesday, April 23, at 7 p.m. It is a Dollar Night, with tickets and select concession items available for just $1, and a Gold Rush. Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME, at the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum or on game day at Monongalia County Ballpark.
Single game tickets and flex plan 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.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow WVU Baseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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Players Mentioned
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