Friday, March 10
Morgantown, W.Va.
12:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
vs
Minnesota
Photo by: Malia Richardson
Mountaineers Welcome Minnesota for Weekend Series
March 09, 2023 03:38 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (March 9, 2023) – The West Virginia baseball team welcomes Minnesota to Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark for a three-game set, beginning on Friday with the newly adjusted start time of 12 p.m. Saturday's game will begin at 2 p.m. while Sunday's first pitch is set for 1 p.m.
The Mountaineers are coming off an 8-1 win over Canisius in their home opener on Wednesday. Freshman Gavin Van Kempen struck out eight in 5.1 innings while four relievers combined to throw 4.2 scoreless innings.
Sophomore JJ Wetherholt hit his team-leading fourth home run of the season while junior Braden Barry hit a three-run home run to blow the game open in the sixth inning. Both Wetherholt and Barry each had three hits and three RBI while redshirt-senior Caleb McNeely added two hits and an RBI. Tevin Tucker also reached base four times with a hit, two walks, and a hit-by-pitch, and scored two runs.
This weekend, WVU will roll with the same rotation as junior Ben Hampton will get the start on Friday, fifth-year senior Blaine Traxel on Saturday, and sophomore Grant Siegel toeing the rubber on Sunday. Hampton and Traxel each have ERAs under three and are 1-2 in the Big 12 in innings pitched with Traxel throwing two consecutive complete games.
Wetherholt leads the team with a .489 batting average, 1.467 OPS, four home runs, and 12 stolen bases. Redshirt-senior Dayne Leonard is tied with Wetherholt in RBI with 10.
In the bullpen, six relievers have sub-2 ERA with five having not given up an earned run yet this season.
Minnesota enters the weekend with a 2-11 record, winning its first two games of the season this week against Northern Illinois and South Dakota State. John Anderson is in his 42nd season as the head coach of the Golden Gophers. He has a career record of 1349-975-3 and has made 18 NCAA Tournaments.
Brett Bateman, Boston Merlian, and Tucker Novotny were all named to the Big 10 Preseason Honors list. Bateman leads Minnesota with a .392 batting average while Ike Mezzenga is hitting .391. Riley Swenson has a team-high three home runs and Jake Perry paces the team with seven RBI
On the mound, Richie Holetz has a 3.52 ERA with 11 stirkeouts. Novotny leads the team with 15 punchouts
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The Mountaineers are coming off an 8-1 win over Canisius in their home opener on Wednesday. Freshman Gavin Van Kempen struck out eight in 5.1 innings while four relievers combined to throw 4.2 scoreless innings.
Sophomore JJ Wetherholt hit his team-leading fourth home run of the season while junior Braden Barry hit a three-run home run to blow the game open in the sixth inning. Both Wetherholt and Barry each had three hits and three RBI while redshirt-senior Caleb McNeely added two hits and an RBI. Tevin Tucker also reached base four times with a hit, two walks, and a hit-by-pitch, and scored two runs.
This weekend, WVU will roll with the same rotation as junior Ben Hampton will get the start on Friday, fifth-year senior Blaine Traxel on Saturday, and sophomore Grant Siegel toeing the rubber on Sunday. Hampton and Traxel each have ERAs under three and are 1-2 in the Big 12 in innings pitched with Traxel throwing two consecutive complete games.
Wetherholt leads the team with a .489 batting average, 1.467 OPS, four home runs, and 12 stolen bases. Redshirt-senior Dayne Leonard is tied with Wetherholt in RBI with 10.
In the bullpen, six relievers have sub-2 ERA with five having not given up an earned run yet this season.
Minnesota enters the weekend with a 2-11 record, winning its first two games of the season this week against Northern Illinois and South Dakota State. John Anderson is in his 42nd season as the head coach of the Golden Gophers. He has a career record of 1349-975-3 and has made 18 NCAA Tournaments.
Brett Bateman, Boston Merlian, and Tucker Novotny were all named to the Big 10 Preseason Honors list. Bateman leads Minnesota with a .392 batting average while Ike Mezzenga is hitting .391. Riley Swenson has a team-high three home runs and Jake Perry paces the team with seven RBI
On the mound, Richie Holetz has a 3.52 ERA with 11 stirkeouts. Novotny leads the team with 15 punchouts
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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