Tuesday, March 8
Morgantown, W.Va.
5:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
8-4
5
vs
4
Rider
6-5
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
R
H
E
Rider
0
1
0
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
4
10
2
West Virginia
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
2
0
1
5
11
1
Hussey, Mountaineers Walk Off Rider
March 08, 2022 10:40 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Freshman infielder Grant Hussey's walk-off, RBI double capped off the West Virginia University baseball team's 5-4 win over Rider in 10 innings on Tuesday night at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark.
The Washington, West Virginia, native completed a WVU comeback with his clutch hit, sending the Mountaineers back into the win column. West Virginia (8-4) trailed, 4-2, at one point, before it tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the eighth, leading to Hussey's heroics in extra innings.
Freshman right-handed pitcher Michael Kilker earned the win on the mound, his second of the year, while Rider's Cal Stalzer took the loss.
"What a great lesson for us," WVU coach Randy Mazey said. "If you don't show up and play well, then anybody on our schedule can beat you. It wasn't easy for (Rider) to travel over here, but they came to beat us, and they were getting ready to if we wouldn't have gotten a couple of clutch hits there at the end."
Rider (6-5) opened the scoring in the top of the second to take a 1-0 lead. The Broncs loaded the bases in the frame but redshirt sophomore right-hander Tyler Strechay, who made his first start on the mound since March 23, 2021, was able to keep the damage to a minimum.
In the bottom half of the inning, sophomore infielder Mikey Kluska tied the game at 1 with an RBI double down the left-field line. The White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, native drove in Hussey, who tallied a leadoff double.
WVU took the lead in the bottom of the third, thanks to sophomore catcher McGwire Holbrook's double down the line in left. That put the Mountaineers on top, 2-1.
From there, freshman right-handers Will Watson and Trent Hodgdon and redshirt junior righty Noah Short kept Rider off the board from the third through sixth innings. Hodgdon struck out four in 2.0 innings of work, while Short fanned his only two hitters of the night in the top of the sixth.
However, Rider retook the lead with three runs in the top of the seventh to make it 4-2.
In need of a rally, West Virginia loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth. Hussey cut the deficit to one with a sacrifice fly to left, before WVU tied the game on a fielder's choice off the bat of Kluska, as junior outfielder Victor Scott II beat a throw to the plate.
Then, junior right-hander Jacob Watters kept the Broncs at bay with four strikeouts in two innings of late relief, allowing just one hit.
After Kilker tallied a 1-2-3 top of the 10th, it was Hussey's time to win it for his club. The freshman smashed a ball to the right-center gap, rolling all the way to the wall and allowing WVU to score the game-winning run.
"It's just cool for a West Virginia kid to get the first walk-off of the year in front of our fans," Mazey said of Hussey. "That's just a really cool moment for that kid."
Hussey went 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI, while Kluska also drove in a pair in the win. Junior outfielder Austin Davis led the team with three hits, while Holbrook also recorded a multi-hit night.
With the win, WVU extended its streak to 21 consecutive wins in midweek, home games. The streak began on April 3, 2017.
Next up, West Virginia plays host to Ohio State for a three-game, weekend series from March 11-13, at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark. Friday's series opener is set for a 6 p.m. ET, first pitch.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The Washington, West Virginia, native completed a WVU comeback with his clutch hit, sending the Mountaineers back into the win column. West Virginia (8-4) trailed, 4-2, at one point, before it tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the eighth, leading to Hussey's heroics in extra innings.
Freshman right-handed pitcher Michael Kilker earned the win on the mound, his second of the year, while Rider's Cal Stalzer took the loss.
"What a great lesson for us," WVU coach Randy Mazey said. "If you don't show up and play well, then anybody on our schedule can beat you. It wasn't easy for (Rider) to travel over here, but they came to beat us, and they were getting ready to if we wouldn't have gotten a couple of clutch hits there at the end."
Rider (6-5) opened the scoring in the top of the second to take a 1-0 lead. The Broncs loaded the bases in the frame but redshirt sophomore right-hander Tyler Strechay, who made his first start on the mound since March 23, 2021, was able to keep the damage to a minimum.
In the bottom half of the inning, sophomore infielder Mikey Kluska tied the game at 1 with an RBI double down the left-field line. The White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, native drove in Hussey, who tallied a leadoff double.
WVU took the lead in the bottom of the third, thanks to sophomore catcher McGwire Holbrook's double down the line in left. That put the Mountaineers on top, 2-1.
From there, freshman right-handers Will Watson and Trent Hodgdon and redshirt junior righty Noah Short kept Rider off the board from the third through sixth innings. Hodgdon struck out four in 2.0 innings of work, while Short fanned his only two hitters of the night in the top of the sixth.
However, Rider retook the lead with three runs in the top of the seventh to make it 4-2.
In need of a rally, West Virginia loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth. Hussey cut the deficit to one with a sacrifice fly to left, before WVU tied the game on a fielder's choice off the bat of Kluska, as junior outfielder Victor Scott II beat a throw to the plate.
Then, junior right-hander Jacob Watters kept the Broncs at bay with four strikeouts in two innings of late relief, allowing just one hit.
After Kilker tallied a 1-2-3 top of the 10th, it was Hussey's time to win it for his club. The freshman smashed a ball to the right-center gap, rolling all the way to the wall and allowing WVU to score the game-winning run.
"It's just cool for a West Virginia kid to get the first walk-off of the year in front of our fans," Mazey said of Hussey. "That's just a really cool moment for that kid."
Hussey went 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI, while Kluska also drove in a pair in the win. Junior outfielder Austin Davis led the team with three hits, while Holbrook also recorded a multi-hit night.
With the win, WVU extended its streak to 21 consecutive wins in midweek, home games. The streak began on April 3, 2017.
Next up, West Virginia plays host to Ohio State for a three-game, weekend series from March 11-13, at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark. Friday's series opener is set for a 6 p.m. ET, first pitch.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Kilker, Michael (2-0)
L: Stalzer, C. (1-1)
Batting:
RBI: Volpe, J. 1 ; Skettini, B. 1 ; O'Donnell, B 1 ; Winsett, J. 1
SF: Skettini, B. 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Barbiere, J. 1 ; Volpe, J. 1 ; O'Donnell, B 1 ; Erbe, J 1
HBP: Lesch, L. 1
Batting:
2B: Scott II, Victor 1 ; Holbrook, McGwire 1 ; Hussey, Grant 2 ; Kluska, Mikey 1
RBI: Holbrook, McGwire 1 ; Hussey, Grant 2 ; Kluska, Mikey 2
SF: Hussey, Grant 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Davis, Austin 1 ; Wetherholt, JJ 1 ; Scott II, Victor 1 ; Smith, Evan 1 ; Hussey, Grant 1
SB: Davis, Austin 1 ; Kluska, Mikey 1 ; Leonard, Dayne 1
CS: Davis, Austin 1
PO: Davis, Austin 1
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
1
H
3
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
5
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
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RHP
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RHP
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