Mountaineers Eliminated from the Big 12 Championship

West Virginia relievers give up five RBI walks in loss to Kansas State

The West Virginia University bullpen. WVU baseball vs. Penn State / Christopher Hall

Arlington, TX – For the third consecutive season, the West Virginia Mountaineers (33-22)  leave the Big 12 Conference Baseball Championship without a win after falling to the Kansas State Wildcats (32-23) in an elimination game Wednesday morning 8-4.

Junior JJ Wetherholt led the game off with a single and sophomore Logan Sauve followed with a single to left field and senior Reed Chumley was beaned by the 3-2 pitch to lead the bases before junior Brodie Kresser smacked a two-RBI single back up the middle. Then, sophomore Sam White hit a sacrifice RBI fly ball to right field to give the Mountaineers a 3-0 lead.

West Virginia senior starting pitcher Hambleton Oliver faced the minimum through three but in the fourth, the Wildcats ran him off the mound after junior Brendan Jones worked a leadoff walk followed by a pair of singles before redshirt junior Brady Day ripped a two-RBI double into right-centerfield and junior David Bishop delivered an RBI single back up the middle to tie the game and end Oliver’s day.

Sophomore reliever Robby Porco entered the game and a six-pitch walk loaded the bases before a pop-up bunt recorded the first out of the inning, but a wild pitch walked in the go-ahead run and scored another for a 5-3 Kansas State lead.

West Virginia head coach Randy Mazey called sophomore Cole Fehrman from the bullpen, but consecutive walks put another Wildcat run on the board. Again, in a search for answers, Luke Lyman took the mound. The sophomore gave up the fourth RBI walk of the frame to cap off a seven-run fourth inning for Kansas State and a 7-3 advantage.

Freshman Chase Myer gave up a single and three walks in the sixth to add to the Wildcats’ lead, 8-3.

After giving up three runs on three hits in the first inning, Kansas State starting pitcher Owen Boerema threw seven scoreless innings and limited the Mountaineers to two hits before a leadoff off pinch-hit double in the ninth, followed one-out RBI double by sophomore Skylar King scored a Mountaineer run. However, the senior remained steady, recording his ninth and 10 strikeouts of the day for his second win against the Mountaineers this season, his sixth overall, as Kansas takes the 8-4 decision.