The WVU baseball team lost the second game of a three-game series to Baylor, 4-1, on May 18, at Monongalia County Ballpark.
The Bears (31-19, 12-11 Big 12) scored two runs in the fifth to take the lead and another in the eighth to tie the series at 1-1.
Both teams had eight hits in the contest. WVU committed one error that allowed the final run to score, unearned, while BU had two errors. Baylor left 12 runners on base and WVU stranded 11.
“A lot of times, if you only give up four runs, then you’re going to win the game,” WVU coach Randy Mazey said. “Today wasn’t one of those days. Their bullpen is their strength. When we got into their ‘pen, that wasn’t to our advantage, it was to their advantage.”
Junior second baseman Kyle Gray and sophomore center fielder Brandon White each had two hits to lead WVU, and Gray added a run scored. Six Mountaineers had a hit in the contest. Junior catcher Ivan Gonzalez drove in WVU’s run, tying the game at 1-1 in the fourth inning.
Sophomore right-handed starter Isaiah Kearns allowed a run on three hits in three innings. A total of 10 Mountaineer pitchers took the mound. Sophomore righty Kade Strowd, who pitched 1 1/3 innings beginning in the fourth, suffered the loss. He gave up two runs on four hits.
WVU used 10 pitchers total.
“The pitching plan worked to perfection [Thursday], but Kearns was throwing pretty well when we took him out,” Mazey said. “That was the difference. Not too many guys after Kearns threw all that well. We walked seven. I don’t know how many they walked, but if you walk seven guys, then you’re not going to win unless you score 10 runs. We just have to pitch better than that.”
For the second consecutive day, Baylor took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a two-out RBI single.
The Mountaineers put two runners on in the ninth with two outs, as Zarbnisky reached on a fielding error and White reached on an infield single. However, a strikeout ended the game.
The series concludes with the regular-season finale May 19, with first pitch moved up to noon, due to inclement weather expected in the area. Prior to the game, at 11:30 a.m., graduating seniors Shane Ennis and BJ Myers will be honored for their outstanding careers at WVU.
Tickets are available at wvugame.com, by calling 1-800-WVU GAME (988-4263), at the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum or on game day at Monongalia County Ballpark. Admission for WVU students is free with a valid student I.D.
May 19 is Family Day, where fans can purchase four tickets and receive a $10 concession voucher for just $25. It also is the final trading card giveaway and postgame autograph session of the year, for kids 18 and under. The home finale is National Armed Forces Day, with $3 tickets for members of the military with a military ID.
Football
The ACC announced that WVU’s Sept. 15, non-conference football game at N.C. State, in Raleigh, N.C., will be televised on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU at 3:30 p.m. The television network will be selected at a later date.
The Mountaineers open the season Sept. 1, against Tennessee, at Bank of America Stadium, in Charlotte, N.C.
