Box Score LAWRENCE, Kansas – The West Virginia University baseball team fell to Kansas, 7-3, on Friday afternoon at Hoglund Ballpark.
 
The Mountaineers (24-16, 7-6 Big 12) never led in the series opener of the three-game, Big 12 Conference set. WVU finished with eight hits, scoring a run the fifth and two in the eighth, while Kansas (18-24, 3-10 Big 12) had 10 hits with two runs in the first, three in the fourth and one each in the fifth and seventh.
 
Junior right-handed pitcher Jacob Watters took the loss for WVU, dropping his record to 2-4 on the year, while Kansas' Daniel Hegarty earned a complete-game victory.
 
Kansas took an early advantage with its two, first-inning runs. Watters needed 38 pitches to get through the opening frame but was able to get an inning-ending line out with a pair of runners on base.
 
The Jayhawks also loaded the bases in the second, but Watters got out of the jam unharmed. The Rocky Gap, Virginia, native issued a strikeout to retire KU, one of his five on the day.
 
KU added three runs in the fourth off a solo home run and two-out, two-run double down the line. That made it a 5-0 ballgame.
 
In the fifth, the Mountaineers got one back as junior outfielder Victor Scott II opened the scoring for WVU with an RBI single to cut it to 5-1. But the hosts got the run right back with a tally in the bottom half to push the lead back to five.
 
After the Jayhawks plated another run in the seventh, redshirt junior catcher Dayne Leonard socked a two-run homer in the top of the eighth to cut the deficit to 7-3. The Spring Green, Wisconsin, native finished a triple short of the cycle, going 3-for-4 with the two RBI.
 
West Virginia went in order in the ninth.
 
Following Watters' exit one batter into the fifth, sophomore right-hander Carlson Reed pitched the final 4.0 innings in relief. The Marietta, Georgia, native allowed one run on three hits with four strikeouts and three walks.
 
Along with Leonard, Scott II finished 2-for-4 with an RBI on the offensive side.
 
Up next, West Virginia and Kansas meet again on Saturday in the middle game of this weekend's series. First pitch in Lawrence is set for 3 p.m. ET.
 
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.