Early deficit in the first
Cole started the day against Jake Schaffner, Schaffner won the first battle with a walk. Shaffner later stole second base.
Owen Hull brought Shaffner home with a double of the centerfield wall, giving North Carolina a 1-0 lead. Gavin Gallaher grounded out to first for the first out. Hull scored after a wild throw to third went into the out field, extending the lead 2-0. Erik Paulsen continued with a single to right. Cooper Nicholson was sat down for the second out on q fly out. Tyler Howe struck out for the third out.
Armani Guzman led off for the Mountaineers in the bottom of the first. Guzman faced pitcher Folger Boaz and reached base on a walk. Gavin Kelly followed with a single to left to put runners at first and second. Paul Schoenfeld reached on a fielder’s choice (out recorded at second) and was able to advance Guzman to third. Following a strike out to Sean Smith, Matthew Graveline brought home Guzman with a single to center, cutting the Tar Heel lead to just one (2-1). Both runners stole on a pitch to Matt Ineich. He grounded out for the final out of the inning.
Tar Heels pull away in the third
The Mountaineers retired the Tar Heels in order in the top of the second. Pitcher Jackson Rose came into the game for North Carolina to start the bottom of the second. Rose retired the Mountaineers in order in the bottom of the second.
Schaffner walked to open the top of the third. Hull followed with a single to left. Gallaher brought another run home for Carolina with a single to left, the Mountaineers were able to record an out at third for the first out of the inning. Following the score, Ian Korn entered the game for West Virginia. Paulsen reached first on a pop up to left that both Mountaineer fielders lost sight of. Nicholson cleared the bases with a triple to center, making the score 5-1 Tar Heels. Howe reached first but West Virginia recorded the second out at home. Korn sat down Hynek on a strike out to end the top of the third.
Related: Bulldogs blank Longhorns 2-0 in pitching duel.
Guzman reached first base on a bunt to open the bottom of the third. Kelly grounded out but was able to advance Guzman to second. Schoenfeld reached first base on a ground ball but Guzman was thrown out at third for the second out. Smith struck out to end the inning.
North Carolina takes control in the fourth
Following a pop out from Winslow to open the top of the fourth, French singled to left. Schaffner reached first base in the following at-bat on a fielders choice, West Virginia did not record an out due to an error. Hull added another run for North Carolina with a double to left, making the score 6-1. Gallaher singled up the middle to add two more runs and make the score 8-1. Paulsen and Nicholson were both recorded as the final two outs to end the top of the fourth.
The Mountaineers were unable to establish any offense in the bottom of the fourth. Korn retired the Tar Heels in order in the top of the fifth. The Mountaineer bats continued to stay quiet in the bottom of the fifth.
After retiring the first two batters in the top of the sixth, Korn gave up a triple to Hull. Gallaher followed with a single to left to score another run for the Tar Heels, extending the lead 9-1. Following the score, the Mountaineers went to the bullpen and brought in Reese Bassinger. Following a stolen base, Paulsen singled to add another run for North Carolina (10-1). Nicholson struck out to end the inning.
Related: Matt Wells on WVU Baseball’s Omaha run: culture, fans, and staying in the moment.
Following a walk to Schoenfeld to start the bottom of the sixth, Smith reached base on a fielder’s choice (Schoenfeld out at second). Graveline was able to advance Smith to third with a single to right. Ineich walked to load the bases with one out. North Carolina made a pitching change and brought in Matthew Matthijs. Brock Wills lined out into a double play to end the inning.
After the first two Carolina batters were sat down to being the top of the seventh, Winslow singled. French scored Winslow on a double to center to make the score 11-1. A base hit from Schaffner scored French to give North Carolina a 12-1 lead. Hull grounded out to second for the final out.
Late Mountaineer surge
Following a ground out from Lumsden and a strike out to Hall to open the bottom of the seventh, Guzman singled. Kelly scored Guzman off a triple to center to make the score 12-2. Schoenfeld added another run with a single to left, making the score 12-3. Smith walked to put runners at first and second with two outs. North Carolina made another pitching change, this time bringing in Cameron Padgett. Graveline added another run with a single to right, making the score 12-4. Ineich singled to left to add another run and make the score 12-5. The Tar Heels made another pitching change, this time bringing in Caden Glauber. The Mountaineers scored another run on a wild pitch to make the score 12-6.
Following a walk to Wills, Lumsden struck out to end a five run inning for West Virginia.
Ben McDougal entered the game for West Virginia in the top of the eighth. McDougal was able to post a zero to keep the score 12-6.
Kelly added another run with a solo shot to center, but that was the only offense for West Virginia in the bottom of the eighth.
Carson Estridge entered the game for West Virginia in the top of the ninth. Estridge was able to put another zero on the board, retiring three of the four batters he faced.
Rally falls short to end historic season
The Mountaineers were able to put two hits together in the bottom of the ninth, but the rally fell short. The historic season for the 2026 West Virginia Mountaineer Baseball team ends in Omaha with a 12-7 loss to North Carolina
Post-game reflections from the Mountaineers
“You never want to go down, if you’re going to go down, for me, being down 12-1, and scratching, and clawing, and fighting, and running out of gas, and giving literally everything that you have left in the tank to compete, is poetic for me. Talk about things that represent this state, this universe, and that’s what we’re all about.”
“This is the best season in Mountaineer baseball history. They’ve been playing baseball for 135 years. So this group of kids could say that after 135 teams, they were the first team to make it to Omaha, to play, be one of the last four teams standing, certainly tremendous, these kids stuck together, through thick and thin, and adversity, and what they were able to accomplish gave hope and belief and excitement to a state, into a university.”
