Score Predictions for No. 1 West Virginia vs. No. 4 Binghamton

This evening, Morgantown will be the heartbeat of college baseball. Roughly 5,000 or so fans will pack into Kendrick Family Ballpark to watch the West Virginia Mountaineers take on the Binghamton Bearcats in the first game of the regional.

Here is how we see this one playing out.

Schuyler Callihan: West Virginia 7, Binghamton 1

West Virginia is electing to pitch off its ace Maxx Yehl, and it's the right decision, regardless of how this game goes. Chansen Cole loves to live down in the zone and create soft contact, which plays well against this Binghamton lineup that lacks pop. Having a pitcher who is a little firmer with the fastball can actually help a team out. Plus, it's not like Cole is your ordinary No. 2. As Steve Sabins said on Thursday, he has pitched like an ace.

The Bearcats have not pitched well, and all of those struggles came against lower-level competition, meaning this should be a game where the Mountaineers break out the bats and find some momentum early in the weekend. It may not happen right away, but I don't expect it to take long for West Virginia to get traffic on the bases and throw up some crooked numbers.

West Virginia 4, Binghamton 2

West Virginia lacked its offensive pop the final week of the regular season and into the Big 12 tournament and playing in front an overflowing Kendrick Family Ballpark will add pressure to this Mountaineer team.

Defensively, the Mountaineers haven't had a set back, albeit Kansas got loose in the Big 12 Championship, but could have prevented if the bats would have emptied the bases in the fifth in the sixth innings.

Two of West Virginia's top hitters, sophomore Gavin Kelly and senior Paul Schoenfeld have combined to go for 4-20 in the postseason thus far, and the Mountaineers will need the duo to get out of their recent slump if they want to continue the season.

Chansen Cole has been consistent on the mound all season and should keep the Bearcats offense at bay, and will be backed by one of the best defenses in the country.

Morgantown will have party atmosphere surrounding the stadium with fans expecting the Mountaineers to advance to the super regionals for the third straight season after doing so on the road the previous two years. This maybe more of a cautious tale for games two and three than one, but Binghamton, a tough-minded ball club, will not fold under the pressure. So, West Virginia will have to limit its mistakes or the Bearcats could gain confidence and pull off the upset.

Cole will be backed by some Mountaineer runs, and the bullpen has been great all season. I don't believe West Virginia will fully get out of slump out of the plate, but look for senior Sean Smith to lead the group as the Mountaineers take game one 4-2.

Joey Bray: West Virginia 9, Binghamton 2

The Mountaineers are the heavy favorites in this contest, and for good reason. The Binghamton Bearcats travel to Morgantown after winning the American East tournament with a 31-20 overall record, while West Virginia tallied 39 wins and was the runner-up in the Big 12 Tournament last week.

The biggest mismatch in this game is going to be the pitching. The Bearcats have just two pitchers with a sub-3.50 ERA, with only one of them being a starter. The Mountaineers' pitching has been one of their biggest surprises and strong points this season. Whoever the Mountaineers have on the bump for Friday’s contest in addition to Chansen Cole, they will most certainly have the advantage.

Overall WVU is simply the more talented team through and through. It would take a monumental effort from the Bearcats pitching staff to be able to stifle what has been a productive Mountaineers offense and create their own offense against an All-Big 12 First Team pitcher.

I take the Mountaineers to win comfortably in front of a sold-out home crowd.

West Virginia and Binghamton are slated to begin at 5 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.

Add us as a preferred source on Google