The first game against Texas Tech was postponed on Friday night due to weather, and it was played on Saturday in a doubleheader. WVU lost the game 6-4 and snapped their 14-game winning streak in the Big 12. They are 16-4 in conference but have a strong lead over Kansas and Arizona State. The Mountaineers are now 37-7 on the season and 15-4 at home. Read more: Mountaineers drop first of doubleheader to Texas Tech.
Recap: Mountaineers Drop First of Doubleheader to Texas Tech
Texas Tech jumped out to an early lead and never gave it up on Saturday afternoon. Griffin Kirn started on the mound for the Mountaineers. He let the first two batters for the Red Raiders on base via a single and a walk. The first run came on a fielder’s choice to second base, and the second came via a balk. WVU left one man on base in the bottom of the inning.
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Grant Hussey got things going for WVU in the bottom of the third. He hit a lead-off home run to left field. Starting pitcher Mac Heuer got the next three batters for Texas Tech. The next run for Texas Tech came in the sixth inning. Left fielder Logan Hughes walked, and right fielder Damian Bravo followed it with a single. They were advanced on a groundout to second base, and one run scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Antonelli Savaterre.
Texas Tech grew their lead in the top of the seventh. Kirn got two quick outs but could not finish the inning. He gave up back-to-back singles and was replaced by Ben McDougal. He walked the first batter he faced, and head coach Steve Sabins pulled him for Benjamin Hudson. Hudson gave up a double to the first batter he faced, and all three baserunners scored. He walked the next two batters and was replaced by David Hagen, who got the final out. Texas Tech took a 6-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh.
WVU answered with a small rally of their own. Gavin Kelly led off the inning with a single. Hussey singled with one out, and Ben Lumsden pinch-hit for Chase Swain. He grounded into a fielder’s choice but scored Kelly from third. Skylar King finished the inning with a two-run home run to left field to cut the lead to two. WVU had chances to tie or win the game in the final innings but left one man on base in the eighth and three in the bottom of the ninth.
Key Takeaways
WVU did not have much momentum in this game after allowing two runs in the first, one of which came due to a balk. They did not have timely hitting in this game and could not back up their pitching staff, who allowed six runs. They left eight men on base in this game and three in the bottom of the ninth. The Mountaineers had the bases loaded with two outs and could not drive in any runs to get the crowd into the game. The top of the order was batting, and they still did not produce, which is worrisome as we near the postseason.
Griffin Kirn was given a long leash today, probably because WVU used a lot of arms on Wednesday in their loss to Marshall. He threw 6.2 innings and allowed four earned runs on six hits and two walks. He also had eight strikeouts but had a costly balk, which cost the team a run. Little mistakes have been the bane of the Mountaineers recently, and it is finally starting to catch up with them. The doubleheader also exacerbated Sabins’ decision to use seven arms on Wednesday in a non-conference game against Marshall. His hand was forced going into the doubleheader to allow his starting pitchers a longer leash because it limited his options in the bullpen for both games.
