Big 12 Roundup: West Virginia Enters The Chat

The first weekend of Big 12 college baseball conference play is in the books. Operating under the shadow of March Madness, a couple teams made serious statements while others present more questions than answers. After the weekend, just three Big 12 teams remain in D1Baseball's Top 25: Texas Tech (14), Oklahoma State (20), and now West Virginia (24).

How did the three Big 12 inter-conference series shake out? Which team made the most noise this weekend? Where did West Virginia come from?

Kicking Off Conference Play

The headlining series of the weekend was a ranked matchup between Texas Tech and Oklahoma State in Lubbock. Tech took the series 2-1 in a masterpiece of college baseball. The Red Raiders orchestrated a 6-run comeback starting in the B5 and topped with a B10 walk off to win 8-7 on Friday night. The Pokes took Game 2 on Saturday and Tech notched the series win Sunday afternoon.

Oklahoma notched their own 2-1 series win over TCU at home, winning each of the last two games thanks to dynamic defense. The Sooners knocked TCU from 11th in the D1Baseball rankings to unranked and down to 10-9 on the year.

Baylor took two of three from Kansas State in the final conference series of the weekend at home. The victor scored exactly 8 runs in each win, with Baylor winning Saturday and Sunday's match 8-4 each.

Texas and West Virginia both swept their non-conference series. The Longhorns are now on a 10-game win streak while WVU moves to 15-4. Kansas lost two of three – both on a Friday double-header – to The Citadel.

Off The Blocks

Teams like Texas were bound to see regression after last season considering who they lost in the offseason. However, the Big 12 as a whole is off to a rocky start this season. Just three teams sit in D1Baseball's Top 25 and just two of those – Texas Tech and Oklahoma State – have played any sort of conference game yet.

The prowess, or lack thereof, of this year's Big 12 may be critical when seeding the NCAA Tournament later on in June. Given that we've seen teams like TCU and Oklahoma take care of some of the biggest bads of the SEC, we know each team is capable of competing nationally.

But when one of your three staple baseball programs begins 10-9, the selection committee isn't likely to view the conference as a whole as top flight.

Team That Impressed Me The Most

It's time we start talking about the West Virginia Mountaineers. WVU is off to a blazing 15-4 start (second-best in the conference) and just took UNC Greensboro – a Regional team from last year – to the woodshed. That UNCG team might be 10-10, but they notched a win over Notre Dame, swept Rutgers, and pushed NC State to the brink.

Leading the charge on offense is second baseman J.J. Wetherholt. The sophomore is batting a ridiculous .462 with a team-high 25 RBI and 16 stolen bases. Equally as ridiculous as his average is the fact that he's drawn more walks (9) than strikeouts (7).

On the other end, Blane Traxel leads WVU with a 2.02 ERA (min. 8 IP) and 31 strikeouts with just six walks issued. He pitched his third complete game this weekend in a

They just earned a top-25 seat with D1 Baseball and might be a team to make noise this spring in conference play.

Notable Performances

Eric Kennedy, OF, Texas: In three at-bats Sunday, Kennedy hit two home runs and a double. His fourth plate appearance resulted in a walk. The RS Senior leads the Horns with seven round-trippers on the season along with 20 RBI. On the season, 17 of Kennedy's 32 hits have gone for extra bases.

Gavin Kash, INF, Texas Tech: Kash has been money in Lubbock all year long. The sophomore is batting .440 with seven home runs and 34 RBI on the year. But Kash really delivered Friday night, hitting a walk-off RBI double in the B10 to beat Oklahoma State 8-7.

West Virginia Offense: When you beat a tournament team 28-2, the entire batting crew gets a nod. Four players (Braden Barry, Nick Barone, Kevin Dowdell, Grant Hussey) went yard Saturday and 11 different players logged hits. Catcher Dayne Leonard and infielder Caleb McNeely each notched four hits in four at-bats.

Big 12 College Baseball Standings

Rankings below courtesy of D1Baseball

1. #14 Texas Tech Red Raiders (18-4, 2-1)

2. Oklahoma Sooners (13-7, 2-1)

3. Baylor Bears (8-12, 2-1)

4. #20 Oklahoma State Cowboys (16-5, 1-2)

5. Kansas State Wildcats (13-7, 1-2)

6. TCU Horned Frogs (10-9, 1-2)

7. #24 West Virginia Mountaineers (15-4, 0-0)

8. Texas Longhorns (14-7, 0-0)

9. Kansas Jayhawks (8-10, 0-0)

Upcoming Weekend Series

Conference Play

Baylor at #20 Oklahoma State (three games, Stillwater, OK)

Kansas at TCU (three games, Fort Worth, TX)

Oklahoma at Kansas State (three games, Manhattan, KS)

#14 Texas Tech at Texas (three games, Austin, TX)

Non-Conference Play

Xavier at #24 West Virginia (three games, Morgantown, WV)

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