What Steve Sabins Said Following the Win Over Cal Poly

The West Virginia Mountaineers (44-15) handled the Cal Poly Mustangs (39-23) in the first game of the Morgantown Super Regional 12-2.

West Virginia head coach Steve Sabins met with the media following the game and gave his assessment of the Mountaineers' lopsided win.

Opening Statement

"This weekend is all about winning a series. It's kind of back to normal baseball, how we've played all year. You’ve got to win two games to advance.

"It starts with starting pitching. (sophomore) Chansen Cole came out and set the tone very early. That's a really good team, a very good offensive team, a well-coached team. They know how to base run, play defense. They're excellent competition, and Chansen Cole does what he does. The guy's a winner. His mentality, stuff, effort, and work ethic—he's everything that WVU is about, and that was on full display after pretty heroic performances last weekend. He keeps wanting the ball. He keeps performing at the highest level, and what he really does is, he's consistent. He does what he does.

"Tyrus Hall has been absolutely incredible for us all season. He came up with a massive hit today with the grand slam. I thought we had quality at-bats. Their starter has performed really, really well in big games throughout his entire career. He's got plus command, really good movement on his pitches, and I thought that our players did a nice job from an approach-wise.

"We were a little bit back to our defensive selves. I thought we played good defense. We moved our feet better today than we did at the regional and collected outs when we needed to.

"The atmosphere was stupid. It was as good as anything I've ever seen. I keep saying that after every game because it keeps getting better. So, I think we're kind of in the midst of something really special, and everybody's starting to recognize what's happening here is unique and special."

Taking an early lead in he first super regional in Morgantown

I think guys were really grounded today for the most part. I don't think you go up 3-0 early unless you are grounded. The at-bats were good, solid contact, and I think a walk was mixed in there and a home run. So I felt like guys were grounded.

Last weekend you had about as much action as a human can handle, right? The amount of adversity and swings and emotions that went into that. Then you add a day game on top of that, so it was a little bit of a different feel. It kind of felt like our afternoon practice that we've been having all week. We've been starting at 12, getting up at 8:30, having breakfast. I felt like guys were just in a little bit of a routine.

Even yesterday's practice, I was trying to get on some guys ass a little bit because the intensity wasn't that high. But I was also thinking you can only get up so much. Last weekend was just so intense. So, there had to be some sort of decompression take place. I felt like guys were more like themselves today. It was just playing baseball and executing pitches.

It was a day game, but when you mix in the crowd, the environment, the night games, the ups and downs, the comebacks, and the victories, I felt like today was probably our truest form of just playing baseball. When a ground ball is hit to you, field it and throw it to first base, and execute your pitchesd don't chase too many changeups under the zone.

I was proud of how the guys handled it. That's what experience does for you. That's what being in the arena long enough does for you. I'm really excited about the atmosphere that's been created here because it makes our team better. I think they just start to really handle it, and that's from years of work. When you're at LSU in front of 10,000 cajuns and you feel that, your heart rate goes up and the players feel that stuff. Then all of a sudden it's not as big of a deal. You start staying within yourself.

But this dude Chansen is a freak, right? He's at Newberry last year, and for him to be able to be like that, that guy's yin-yang. That guy's zen. Talk about being where your feet are at. That's a different kind of mentality and presence. It's as good as there is that I've ever seen.

Capturing the program's first super regional win

Great. You just have to win this series, and so starting a Friday night with a win is the goal. We didn't do a lot of that this year. That's not fair, but we definitely lost more Fridays than Saturdays and Sundays throughout the year. When we did grab a Friday win, it felt like, "Hey, we've got a chance to win this thing." We were in a really good position.

We've restructured our starting pitching a little bit and who was going on what days and all that, but to get the first one is great. I think the team is so focused and the staff is so focused. You want the win, but we know what we're here to do. You're just staying concentrated and finding ways to win the next one.

Fan Support

It's a big deal. Half the battle here for the last decade is essentially marketing. You're trying to show people how wonderful this state, this university, and this community is. Then you start winning ball games and try to put that on display.

That's where our media team, that's where our administration is so critical, highlighting what this place is, because this is a special atmosphere, special ballpark, special team. We've won a lot of games, a whole lot of games.

There's two programs in the country that have been to three consecutive super regionals: us and North Carolina. For recruits to know that, for fans to know that, for people in this community to show out for one of the best teams in the country, that's what this program is. It's one of the best teams in the country.

All that excitement starts from a passion for this state. It's a passion for what WVU has going on. This team is the New York Yankees of West Virginia. People grew up watching the Mountaineers and rooting for the Mountaineers and they spend a big chunk of their paychecks to drive into town and come watch ball games because it's important to them.

I'm thankful for all the fans. I'm thankful for our president, our athletic director, and our administration. They have gotten behind baseball 100%. They have decided this is going to be something that's here to stay for a long time, and they've been dedicated, not only by providing the financial resources necessary, but also through the excitement and care they show by attending games and showing our players and staff that this is important to them.

If you've got a whole bunch of people pulling the rope in the same direction, you've got a chance to do something special. I think there's a high level of belief here in that.

West Virginia and Cal Poly will meet for game two on Saturday. The first pitch is set for noon EST and the action will be televised on ESPN2.

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