The West Virginia Mountaineers delivered two high-octane performances on Saturday, completing a doubleheader sweep against Georgia Southern to claim the full opening series victory. WVU edged out a thrilling 11-10 win in the opener before securing a solid 5-2 triumph in the nightcap.
Senior Matthew Graveline starred across both contests, blasting a home run and driving in three runs in both games to power the offense. Sophomore Matt Ineich delivered in game one with a pair of hits and two RBI, then stayed hot in game two by reaching base in all five plate appearances thanks to three hits and a couple of walks. Meanwhile, sophomore Gavin Kelly enjoyed a strong day at the plate, racking up four hits total — including three doubles — for extra-base production throughout the day.
Game Two Recap
Junior Dawson Montesa started by striking out the side in the first inning. Montesa posted four scoreless innings, striking out seven batters with no walks and only two runs allowed, finishing his outing after six innings to earn the win.
Redshirt sophomore Bryson Thacker and sophomore David Hagen followed Montesa, each putting up scoreless outings. Freshman David Perez had a dominant ninth inning, striking out two batters and capping things off in just seven pitches to earn his first save.
Kelly started game two the same way he started game one — doubling on the first pitch before scoring on an Ineich single. Graveline blasted his second home run of the day in the second inning, a solo shot to left center, and later showed off his arm in right field in the sixth, throwing out the go-ahead runner at the plate to end the inning.
West Virginia took the lead in the seventh thanks to a Kelly single before four walks forced in two runs. The Eagles appeared to tie it in the eighth when a throw from Kelly hit the runner on a potential 1-2-3 double play, allowing two runs to score. But the play was reviewed, and the runner was ruled out of the baseline, resulting in an obstruction call that ended the inning with no runs for Georgia Southern.
Graveline added an insurance RBI in the ninth, and the Mountaineers closed it out with a 5-2 win in Statesboro.
Up Next
The Mountaineers return to action February 20–22, heading to Lynchburg, Virginia, to face the Liberty Flames. First pitch Friday is set for 4 p.m.
