West Virginia baseball’s run through the Clemson Regional was already improbable enough. Now there’s actually a chance of West Virginia baseball hosting the Super Regionals.
Most Mountaineer fans probably had no idea what Little Rock’s mascot was before this weekend, but they’re about to become huge fans of the Trojans for a day. And that’s because if Little Rock can pull a second massive upset of LSU, the Super Regionals would be played at Kendrick Family Ballpark.
Related: Mountaineers Win Clemson Regional
Little Rock gave the Mountaineers a slight chance to host the Super Regionals with a 10-4 upset of LSU at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge, handing the Tigers their first loss in the regional. The teams will play again on Monday in a winner-take-all finale, with the winner moving on to play the Mountaineers.
Read more: Little Rock Keeps West Virginia Baseball Hosting Dream Alive
Trojans Surging In Regionals
The fact that the Trojans are even in this position is nothing short of miraculous. Truth be told, West Virginia would be in a much better spot if it were counting on Dallas Baptist or even Rhode Island to take down the Bayou Bengals. Little Rock barely qualified for the Ohio Valley Conference tournament, finishing in eighth place with an overall record of 18-32.
That’s not a misprint. The Trojans finished the regular season 14 games under .500.
And yet, they’re a game away from coming to Morgantown. That’s because they’ve won eight of their past nine and turned on the offense. Over their past three games — all elimination games — Little Rock scored 40 runs. Interestingly, the Trojans seem to be winning similarly to the Mountaineers by getting big contributions from the bottom half of the order. In their win over LSU on Sunday, Little Rock first baseman Angel Cano drove in five runs from the seven hole. The Trojans have played with house money ever since getting to the OVC tournament, and they’ll do so again Monday.
LSU Remains a Heavy Favorite
Make no mistake: West Virginia’s probably taking a trip to the bayou. LSU is much deeper than Little Rock and hadn’t allowed a run in its first two victories in the regional. Plus, even though the Tigers burned aces Anthony Eyanson and Kade Anderson in their first two regional games, LSU still has arms available.
The Bayou Bengals tried to sneak by the Trojans with a bullpen game, figuring that they could go to either Casan Evans or Zac Cowan in the late innings if they got the lead. Little Rock upset those plans by scoring six runs in the first three innings.
Related: Mountaineers’ Bottom Hitters Producing
However, that might have backfired a bit on the Trojans. Because LSU never led after the third inning, skipper Jay Johnson never saw a reason to bring either Evans or Cowan into the game. And that means they’re both available for Monday.
By contrast, Little Rock had to use a flurry of arms. Maybe the Trojans can ask ace Jack Cline to give them three innings on Monday, given that Cline only threw 35 pitches against Rhode Island on Saturday. But otherwise, the Trojans will have to rely on their bullpen to give themselves a chance. It’s not impossible, but it’s going to be a tough ask against LSU’s lineup.
Anything Can Happen
Realistically, the chances of West Virginia baseball hosting the Super Regional is probably less than five percent. Little Rock getting here at all is miraculous. Beating LSU back-to-back would go well beyond that.
But this tournament has already been very weird. Vanderbilt and Texas were thought the best teams in the nation. They’ll both be watching the Super Regionals from home.
The simple fact is that West Virginia baseball is one game away from getting to play a Super Regional in Morgantown. If the Trojans do lose, the Mountaineers’ consolation prize is a Super Regional in Baton Rouge. And literally every West Virginia baseball fan would have been thrilled with that outcome a week ago.
