WVU Comes Back to Walk Off No. 16 UCF in Extra Innings

Granville, WV – West Virginia senior Reed Chumley delivered the walk off home run in the bottom of the 11th inning to complete the Mountaineers (22-13, 11-4) comeback for the series sweep with an 11-10 decision against the No. 16 UCF Knights Sunday afternoon.

“We’ve been through it,” said West Virginia head coach Randy Mazey. “Theres nobody out there that’s been through what we’ve been through.”

UCF jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning after two-RBI doubles from junior Lex Boedicker and freshman Andrew Williamson

West Virginia responded in the bottom of the inning. Junior JJ Wetherholt smacked a leadoff double, then sophomore Sam White tripled off the left field wall and junior Kyle West hit a two-run home run to get the Mountaineers within one 4-3.

West Virginia junior Kyle West (39) is greeted by sophomore Sam White after his two-run home run in the first inning. | Christopher Hall

The Knights added a run in the second, following a sacrifice RBI groundball to third from redshirt senior Andrew Brait.

JJ Wetherholt tied the game in the bottom of the frame with a two-run home run.

UCF produced another four-run inning in the third when singles from redshirt senior Jack Zyska and Boedicker to lead off the inning and set up a two-RBI double for redshirt sophomore Braden Calise. Then, Williams hit an RBI single to centerfield before former Mountaineer Mikey Kluska dropped an RBI single in right centerfield for a 9-5 lead.

In the bottom of the sixth and with the bases loaded and two outs, Logan Sauve ripped a double off the left field wall to clear the bases to get the Mountaineers back within one, 9-8.

The West Virginia bullpen struggled to find the strike zone in the eighth and walked a run to extend the UCF lead to two, 10-8.

West Virginia sophomore right-hander Gavin Van Kempen came into the game in the eighth with the bases loaded and two outs and ended the threat striking out junior Dylan King.

In the bottom of the ninth, sophomore Logan Sauve singled into left field and White followed with a double to left centerfield to place runners at second and third. Then, the UCF bullpen struggled to find the strike zone and beaned Reed Chumley and a walked consecutive Mountaineer batters to tie the game at 10. Knights’ reliever Kyle Kramer got out of the bases loaded with a jam with two pop flies to send the game into extra innings.

“We scored two in the bottom on the ninth, and when we didn’t win with bases loaded with one out, all of a sudden you tied the game but they have the momentum because the game you thought was just about over and their back in it, and with the wind blowing out, they can easily thrown a run up there because that kind of deflated us a little bit.”

Van Kempen did not allow it. In 3.2 innings of work, he recorded four strikeouts on a day after the Knights had produced 10 runs on 12 hits.

“He’s had flashes of being so good – this was one of them,” Mazey said. “A guy who proves that he can start games and close games, is worth his weight in gold and that’s what Gavins been doing.

In the 11th, Reed Chumley drove the 1-1 pitch well over the left field wall for the leadoff home run as the Mountaineers pulled off the comeback win 11-10.

“Your work for that moment,” Chumley said. “There’s no words to describe it, it’s just pure joy,”

The Mountaineers are back in action Tuesday night in the Backyard Brawl versus Pitt. The first pitch is set for 6:30 and the action will stream on ESPN+.