Box Score LUBBOCK, Texas – The West Virginia University baseball team broke out the bats to take down No. 8 Texas Tech, 15-4, on Sunday afternoon at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.
 
Leading by a run, the Mountaineers (24-14, 7-5 Big 12) put together a 10-run, ninth inning to break the game open in the series finale of this weekend's three-game, Big 12 Conference set. The squad finished with a season-best 18 hits, including nine from the top-two batters in the lineup.
 
Fifth-year senior right-handed pitcher Chase Smith earned the win, the first of his Mountaineer career, while fifth-year senior right-hander Trey Braithwaite was awarded his fifth save. Mason Molina took the loss for the Red Raiders (29-14, 9-6 Big 12).
 
"I told them that our backs were against the wall a little bit and that you only get so many opportunities in life to show people how tough you are," WVU coach Randy Mazey said. "We took on this opportunity, and we sure did that."
 
For the first time this weekend, the Mountaineers struck early, getting a pair of runs in the top of the first inning. Freshman infielder JJ Wetherholt and sophomore catcher McGwire Holbrook tallied RBI singles to put the visitors up, 2-0.
 
After Tech got a run back in the bottom of the third and tied the game in the fourth, WVU added on with a three-spot in the fifth to take a 5-2 lead. First, junior outfielder Victor Scott II tallied an RBI groundout, before back-to-back, two-out hits by sophomore outfielder Braden Barry and freshman infielder Grant Hussey brought two more home.
 
A Red Raider solo home run cut it to 5-3 in the bottom of the fifth, moments before fifth-year senior right-hander Zach Bravo's outing came to an end. Albuquerque, New Mexico, native started the game on the mound on Sunday, allowing three runs on six hits with three strikeouts in 4.1 innings, earning a no decision.
 
From there, Chase Smith got five outs out of the bullpen to finish the fifth and sixth, keeping Tech off the scoreboard.
 
In the seventh, the Red Raiders cut it 5-4, but redshirt junior right-hander Noah Short limited the damage to just a single, unearned run with three, flyball outs.
 
After Braithwaite pitched a scoreless eighth, WVU blew it open with 10 runs in the top of the ninth. Senior outfielder Austin Davis had two hits in the frame, including an RBI double down the left-field line, as well as an RBI single to left.
 
In all, the Orlando, Florida, native finished with five hits, the first Mountaineer to do so since Braden Zarbnisky on March 3, 2018, against Western Kentucky, as well as three doubles, four runs scored and two RBI.
 
Also in the ninth, Wetherholt scored on a wild pitch after recording an RBI single, while freshman outfielder Evan Smith hit a towering grand slam to right to make it 12-4. The big fly marked Smith's first career homer.
 
Then, Wetherholt added another hit, an RBI double, before Scott II's single to center plated the Mountaineers' 10th run of the rally.
 
The Mars, Pennsylvania, native finished 4-for-6 with four runs scored and three RBI. Barry and Evan Smith also enjoyed multi-hit performances, as both finished with two each.
 
With the win, WVU avoided the sweep against Texas Tech and improved to 16-17 all-time in the series. Of note, Sunday's game was just the Red Raiders' second loss at home this season.
 
"I think, at the end of the year, people will look at this," Mazey said. "That's a huge win. It might be the biggest win of the season."
 
Up next, the Mountaineers return home to take on Penn State on Wednesday, April 27. First pitch at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark in Morgantown is set for 6:30 p.m. ET.
 
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