WVU Baseball survived and advanced to the Bracket 1 final against UNC with a win over Troy on Tuesday.
Armani Guzman led off for the Mountaineers in game nine of the men’s College World Series. The Mountaineers faced pitcher Cooper Ellingworth to start the top of the first. Guzman won the first battle with a single to right, Guzman stole second during the at-bat to Gavin Kelly. Following a strike out to Kelly, Paul Schoenfeld reached base on a walk to put runners at first and second. Sean Smith flew out to deep center for the second out, Guzman was able to advance to third on the play. Matthew Graveline went down on strikes to end top of the first. Read more:Mountaineers power past Trojans 12-0 to stay alive in Omaha.
Montesa handles the Trojans in the first
Dawson Montesa took the mound for West Virginia in the bottom of the first and faced Aaron Piasecki to start his day. Piasecki was the first out recorded with a fly out to left. Josh Pyne was next to bat and walked on four pitches.
Blake Cavill struck out but Pyne was able to steal second base. The Mountaineers were able to get out of the inning with no damage after Jimmy Janicki grounded out for the third out.
Matt Ineich opened up the top of the second with a walk. Brodie Kresser and Ben Lumsden were both retired for the first two outs of the inning.
Tyrus Hall was able to keep the inning alive with a single to right, putting runners at first and second for Guzman. Unfortunately for the Mountaineers, Guzman grounded out at first to end the inning for West Virginia.
Montesa started the bottom of the second with back-to-back strike outs. Following a walk to Sean Darnell, the Mountaineers were able to record the third out on a fly out from Jabe Boroff.
West Virginia draws first blood in the third
Kelly singled to open the top of the third. Schoenfeld grounded out at first but was able to advance Kelly to second. Following a strike out to Smith, Graveline brought Kelly home with a double to left to give West Virginia a 1-0 lead.
Ineich drew a walk in the following at-bat to put runners at first and second for Kresser with two outs. Kresser was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Lumsden. Graveline reached home on a wild pitch to Lumsden to extend the lead 2-0. Lumsden flew out to left to end the top of the third.
Related: Matt Wells on WVU Baseball’s Omaha run: culture, fans, and staying in the moment.
Montesa set down the Trojans in order in the bottom of the third and was able to add another strike out to his total. Dylan Alonso was the new pitcher for Troy to start the top of the fourth.
Hall struck out to start the inning. Guzman followed with a walk and later stole second and then third. The Mountaineers were unable to score Guzman, as the inning ended after a strike out to Kelly and a ground out from Schoenfeld.
Trojans threaten but Mountaineers escape
Cavill flew out to open the bottom of the fourth. Janicki followed with a double to right. Meier flew out to left in the following at-bat, but was able to advance Janicki to third with two outs. The Mountaineers were able to escape the inning with. strike out to Nelson for the third out.
Trojans load the bases but come up empty
The Mountaineers were retired in order in the top of the fifth. Following a fly out from Darnell to lead off the inning, Boroff singled to left to give the Trojans a base runner.
Markham hit a ground ball and reached first, but the lead runner was recorded out at second. Piasecki walked to put runners at first and second with two outs. The Mountaineers once again escaped with no runs allowed, thanks to a ground out from Pyne for the third out.
Kelly slams three-run blast
Following a pop out from Kresser and a strike out to Lumsden to open the sixth, Hall reached base on a single. Guzman followed with a walk to put runners at first and second with two outs. Kelly then stepped to the plate and blasted a three run home run to center to extend West Virginia’s lead 5-0. Schoenfeld reached on a perfectly placed infield single.
Troy went to the bullpen to make another pitching change, this time bringing Matt Dill into the game. Schoenfeld reached second base on a wild pitch to Smith. Smith brought Schoenfeld home on a single to right, extending the lead 6-0. Graveline flew out to end the top of the sixth.
Related: Mountaineers shatter records and earn All-American honors in 2026 outdoor season.
After walking Cavill to start the bottom of the sixth, Montesa struck out Janicki. The following at-bat Meier was hit by pitch to put runners at first and second with one out, ending the day for Montesa after 112 pitches.
Ben McDougal came into the game and retired Nelson on a fly out (runner moved to third). Darnell with runners at the corners and two outs, reached base on a walk to load the bases. West Virginia once again got out of the inning with no runs allowed thanks to a ground out from Boroff.
Mountaineers keep pouring it on in the seventh
Ineich led off the top of the seventh with a single to right, Ineich later reached second on a wild pitch. Kresser grounded out in the following at-bat,he was unable to advance Ineich to third. Lumsden singled to left to score Ineich and extend the lead 7-0. Hall grounded to third and reached first base, but Lumsden was recorded out at second.
Troy once again went to the bullpen, this time bringing in Hayden Smith. Smith struck out Guzman to end the top of the seventh.
Bassinger escapes bases loaded jam
McDougal got off to a rocky start in the bottom of the seventh, giving up a double to Markham and walking Piasecki. Pyne singled to right to load the bases with no outs. Reese Bassinger then entered the game for West Virginia and struck out Cavill for the first out. Janicki flew out to center for the second out and was unable to score the runner from third. Bassinger struck out Meier for the third out to escape a bases loaded jam.
The Mountaineers were retired in order. in the top of the eighth. Bassinger responded by striking out the side in the bottom of the eighth.
Mountaineers pile on the runs
Graveline opened the top of the ninth with a single to left. Ineich followed with a single to left to advance Graveline to third. Kresser flew out to center but was able to score Graveline to make the score 8-0 WVU. The Trojans once again went to the bullpen, this time to bring in Brady Richardson. Zahir Barjam (pinch hitting for Lumsden) singled to left to put runners at first and second.
Both runners advanced thanks to a wild pitch to Hall. Hall reached base on a walk to load the bases.
Guzman added two more runs with a double to right, making the score 10-0. Troy made another pitching change and brought in Nate Criswell. Kelly blooped a single to shallow center to score another run (11-0). Kelly stole second base. Schoenfeld grounded out but was able to score another run (12-0). Following a walk to Smith, Graveline flew out to end the top of the ninth.
Carson Estridge came in to pinch for WVU in the bottom of the ninth, finishing off the Trojans and preserving West Virginia’s 12-0 victory.
WVU is back in action Wednesday in another do-or-die game for the Mountaineers. First pitch against the Tar Heels is set for 2 p.m. EST/1 p.m. local.
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