MORGANTOWN — The WVU baseball team hosts No. 19 Texas in a three-game series April 27-29, at Monongalia County Ballpark. Game times are 6:30 p.m. today, 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.
The Mountaineers (20-18, 4-8 Big 12) have won four of their last five games and nine of their last 12. WVU is coming off an 11-10 victory in 13 innings at Marshall, on Tuesday.
WVU is ranked No. 33 in the NCAA RPI and has the No. 7 strength of schedule in the nation, according to WarrenNolen.com.
The Mountaineers are second in the Big 12 and No. 22 nationally with 67 stolen bases and No. 3 in the Big 12 with 13 triples. WVU is fourth in the league and No. 19 nationally with 39 double plays turned, and is No. 4 in the Big 12 with 34 home runs, a .422 slugging percentage, 20 sacrifice bunts and a 1.79 strikeout-to-walk ratio on the mound.
The Longhorns (29-15, 11-4 Big 12) are ranked as high as No. 19 in three polls and are in the top 25 in all of the six major rankings. Texas is in second place in the Big 12 standings, one game out of first place.
Senior right-hander B.J. Myers (0-1, 4.89 ERA) will start for WVU tonight against Texas junior righty Nolan Kingham (5-2, 4.29). Saturday’s pitching match-up features Mountaineers sophomore righty Kade Strowd (4-3, 4.24) against Longhorns junior right-hander Chase Shugart (4-2, 4.12). Sophomore right-hander Blair Henley (5-5, 3.05) gets the ball for Texas on Sunday, while WVU’s starter has not been determined.
Tickets are available at WVUgame.com, by calling 1-800-988-4263, at the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum or on game day at the ballpark. Admission for WVU students is free with a valid student I.D.
Today’s promotions include Friday Night Happy Hour, with half off beverages from 5:30-6:30, and all fans can play Baseball Bingo. Saturday is Family Day, where fans can buy four tickets and get a $10 concession voucher for $25. Sunday is a trading card giveaway, Kids Day, postgame autographs and running the bases.
TENNIS
TCU 5, WVU 1: AUSTIN, Texas — WVU’s season came to an end with a loss to the Horned Frogs in the Big 12 tournament.
WVU (7-14, 1-8 Big 12) began the match by dropping the doubles point.
Christina Jordan and Sofía Duran fell to Alexis Pereira and Donika Bashota, 6-3. Lyn Yuen Choo and Paula Goetz evened the matches by besting TCU’s Marie Norris and Stevie Kennedy, 6-4. But Anne-Sophie Courteau and Giovanna Caputo fell to TCU’s Aleksa Cveticanin and Aleksandra Zenovka, 6-4.
Then the Horned Frogs won four of the first five singles matches to claim the contest. At No. 2, Courteau lost to Bashota,
6-2 and 6-0. Jordan fell to Cveticanin, 6-3 and 6-3. Duran gave WVU its point with a win over Meredith Roberts, 6-4 and 6-3.
The Horned Frogs clinched the match by winning two contests at the same time. After dropping a first set tiebreak, Caputo fell in the second set to Tedford, while Choo was bested by Bashota to end the match.
The match between Goetz and No. 124 Zenovka was abandoned heading into the third set, with Goetz winning the first set and falling in a second set tiebreak, 7-2.
It was the final career match for seniors Choo and Yvon Martinez.
RIFLE
Mountaineers Ginny Thrasher and Elizabeth Gratz concluded their competitive time at the ISSF Changwon World Cup, in Changwon, Korea.
Representing the United States, the pair competed in the women’s 10m air rifle on Sunday. Thrasher, a junior, shot in the main competition and finished 68th overall, with a 618.7 mark (103.2, 103.1, 103.2, 102.4, 102.5, 104.3). A senior, Gratz shot in a Minimum Qualifying Score (MQS) position, meaning she was ineligible for the final or a medal, and tallied a 622.0 total (103.7, 105.2, 104.5, 101.9, 103.7, 103.0).
Thrasher also shot from an MQS position in the women’s 50m 3 positions Thursday and finished with a 1165 total, shooting marks of 385 kneeling, 391 prone and 389 standing.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
The Mountaineers will not reschedule their postponed spring match against Duquesne and will instead scrimmage the WVU men’s club soccer team at 11 a.m. Saturday, at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. The match is free and open to the public.
MEN’S SOCCER
The Mountaineers wrap up their spring exhibition schedule with the annual alumni game, at 7 p.m. today. The match will be held at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium, and admission is free for all fans.
