Tuesday, April 25
Morgantown, W.Va.
6:30 p.m.
West Virginia University
30-11
14
vs
2
Penn State
23-14
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Penn State
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
2
3
1
West Virginia
0
0
4
8
1
1
0
0
X
14
13
2
Photo by: Malia Richardson
Wetherholt, Hussey Hit Grand Slams in Rout of Penn State
April 25, 2023 11:29 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – In front 3,475 raucous fans, the West Virginia baseball team exacted revenge on Penn State, downing the Nittany Lions, 14-2, at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark, Tuesday evening. The Mountaineers have now won five straight games and improve to 30-11 while Penn State falls to 23-14.
It is the fastest the Mountaineers have reached the 30-win plateau since also starting 30-11 in 2008.
"What an unbelievable atmosphere," said head coach Randy Mazey. "People are having so much fun watching West Virginia baseball, it's been electric here the last couple of weeks. It's fun to win and have people come to our games and cheer for our guys."
The two big swings came off the bats of a pair of sophomores as JJ Wetherholt and Grant Hussey each hit grand slams. They each added a second hit on the night while Wetherholt finished with five RBI.
Other big performers on the night included freshman Logan Sauve, who hit his second home run of the season, and redshirt-senior Caleb McNeely who reached base five times and drove in a pair of runs.
Neither team had a hit in the first two innings, but in the third, the first three batters in the inning got on for the Mountaineers before Wetherholt unleashed the first grand slam of the season for WVU, a laser into the Mountaineer bullpen.
Wetherholt came up with the bases loaded again and nearly hit another grand slam, instead settling for a sacrifice fly to the warning track. The Mountaineers did not stop in the fourth as McNeely followed with a two-run single before freshman Ellis Garcia tacked on another run with an infield hit.
Hussey provided the final blow as he hit the second grand slam of the game for West Virginia. It was his team-leading 10th home run of the season and the second grand slam of his career with the first coming in his first-career game last season against Central Michigan.
The Mountaineers added another run in the fifth as Wetherholt tripled before coming home to score on a single by junior Landon Wallace. Sauve provided the finishing touches in the sixth with a solo home run.
On the mound, freshman Carson Estridge got the start and struck out three while allowing one run in 3.2 innings. Freshman Gavin Van Kempen earned the win by throwing 2.0 innings with three strikeouts while allowing one run. Sophomore Grant Siegel, freshman Cole Ferhman, and junior Carlson Reed each threw a scoreless inning to finish the game.
The Mountaineers return to Big 12 play this weekend as they hit the road to take on Baylor for three games. First pitch on Friday is set for 7:30 p.m.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
It is the fastest the Mountaineers have reached the 30-win plateau since also starting 30-11 in 2008.
"What an unbelievable atmosphere," said head coach Randy Mazey. "People are having so much fun watching West Virginia baseball, it's been electric here the last couple of weeks. It's fun to win and have people come to our games and cheer for our guys."
The two big swings came off the bats of a pair of sophomores as JJ Wetherholt and Grant Hussey each hit grand slams. They each added a second hit on the night while Wetherholt finished with five RBI.
Other big performers on the night included freshman Logan Sauve, who hit his second home run of the season, and redshirt-senior Caleb McNeely who reached base five times and drove in a pair of runs.
Neither team had a hit in the first two innings, but in the third, the first three batters in the inning got on for the Mountaineers before Wetherholt unleashed the first grand slam of the season for WVU, a laser into the Mountaineer bullpen.
Wetherholt came up with the bases loaded again and nearly hit another grand slam, instead settling for a sacrifice fly to the warning track. The Mountaineers did not stop in the fourth as McNeely followed with a two-run single before freshman Ellis Garcia tacked on another run with an infield hit.
Hussey provided the final blow as he hit the second grand slam of the game for West Virginia. It was his team-leading 10th home run of the season and the second grand slam of his career with the first coming in his first-career game last season against Central Michigan.
The Mountaineers added another run in the fifth as Wetherholt tripled before coming home to score on a single by junior Landon Wallace. Sauve provided the finishing touches in the sixth with a solo home run.
On the mound, freshman Carson Estridge got the start and struck out three while allowing one run in 3.2 innings. Freshman Gavin Van Kempen earned the win by throwing 2.0 innings with three strikeouts while allowing one run. Sophomore Grant Siegel, freshman Cole Ferhman, and junior Carlson Reed each threw a scoreless inning to finish the game.
The Mountaineers return to Big 12 play this weekend as they hit the road to take on Baylor for three games. First pitch on Friday is set for 7:30 p.m.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Van Kempen, Gavin (3-0)
L: Molsky, Tommy (2-4)
Batting:
2B: Norris, Grant 1
HR: Marsh, Bobby 1
RBI: Norris, Grant 1 ; Marsh, Bobby 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Harry, Jay 1 ; Marsh, Bobby 1
HBP: Cooper, Tyson 1
Batting:
3B: Wetherholt, JJ 1
HR: Wetherholt, JJ 1 ; Sauve, Logan 1 ; Hussey, Grant 1
RBI: Wetherholt, JJ 5 ; Wallace, Landon 1 ; McNeely, Caleb 2 ; Sauve, Logan 1 ; Garcia, Ellis 1 ; Hussey, Grant 4
SF: Wetherholt, JJ 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Tucker, Tevin 2 ; Wetherholt, JJ 2 ; Wallace, Landon 1 ; McNeely, Caleb 1 ; Leonard, Dayne 1 ; Sauve, Logan 1 ; Garcia, Ellis 1 ; Hussey, Grant 1 ; Barry, Braden 2 ; White, Sam 2
SB: McNeely, Caleb 1
HBP: Leonard, Dayne 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
5
rf/3b
AB
2
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
4
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball1B
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
C
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballINF
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