Mountaineers Drop Game 2 to No. 12 Horned Frogs

TCU's Brayden Taylor's three-run home run in the sixth evened the series with West Virginia (15-10, 1-1) Saturday evening. The Mountaineers jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two innings, but No. 12 TCU (19-8, 6-2) manufactured two runs before Taylor's winning home run.

TCU starting pitcher Cam Brown walked the bases loaded to begin the game before recording the game's first out, striking out freshman Grant Hussey. However, Vince Ippoliti cleared the bases with a double down the first base line to give West Virginia the early 3-0 advantage.

West Virginia tacked on another run in the second when Tevin Tucker delivered a leadoff single, advanced to second on a sacrifice fly from Austin Davis and moved to third on a wild pitch before Victor Scott put the ball in play for a fielder's choice and the RBI for the 4-0 lead.

West Virginia starting pitcher Ben Hampton loaded the bases in the first but came away unscathed. However, in the second, the Horned Frogs again loaded the bases, and with one out, Brayden Taylor hit a sacrifice fly to bring in a run and cut the deficit to three.

TCU cut into the lead in the third after Gray Rodgers leadoff single setup an RBI double from Kurtis Byrne, putting the score 4-2 in favor of the Mountaineers.

Brayden Taylor's three-run home run in the sixth gave TCU the 5-4 lead.

The Horned Frogs bullpen held West Virginia hitless in the seventh and the eighth but Nathan Blasick ripped a two-out double into the alley in left-centerfield, giving the Mountaineers life. However, the game ended with a fly ball to centerfield as the Horned Frogs held for the win 5-4.

The series deciding finale between the two programs is scheduled for Sunday at 1:00 pm and streaming on ESPN+.

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