West Virginia Takes Series from BYU in a Wild Game 3

Provo, UT – In a wild afternoon at Miller Park, the West Virginia Mountaineers (22-4, 4-3) popped out to a seven-run lead but had to rally from an eight-run deficit to take the series deciding game three from the BYU Cougars (14-11, 4-5) Saturday afternoon 19-16.

West Virginia senior Jace Rinehart was 3-6 at the plate with a home run and six RBI and sophomore Armani Guzman was 2-5 with a home run and four RBI.

West Virginia jumped out to an early 7-0 lead.

Senior Grant Hussey hit a one-out double and redshirt junior Chase Swain followed with a single to and sophomore Armani Guzman put the Mountaineers on the board with three-run home run in the top of the second inning.

In the third, Logan Suave blasted a leadoff home run. Senior Kyle West dropped a double in left-centerfield. Then, freshman Gavin Kelley and Hussey hit consecutive RBI doubles before Guzman came back around with a line drive RBI single to right field for the seven-run advantage.

BYU responded with a five run third inning, starting with an RBI triple from redshirt sophomore Keoni Painer. A slow roller to short by junior Luke Anderson was good for an RBI single. Then, with two outs on the board, junior Bryker Hurdsman and senior Brock Watkins delivered RBI doubles and sophomore Ryder Robinson singled to right field for an RBI to cut the WVU lead to two, 7-5.

After West Virginia starting pitcher Carson Estridge allowed the five-run third, head coach Steve Sabins opted to send him back out in the fourth and the junior walked the first two Cougar hitters before he exited the game as two Mountaineer relievers would come into the game and BYU posted a ten-run fourth inning on just four hits. In total, the WVU arms gave up three walks, two hit batsmen, and three hits.

The Cougars took advantage of the Mountaineers’ mistakes. Anderson recorded a two-RBI double and an RBI single, Hurdsman registered an RBI single, and junior Easton Jones hit a two-RBI single up the middle to take a 15-7 lead.

West Virginia answered with a six-run fifth inning. Hussey smacked his third double of the afternoon, then with two on and one-out, Spencer Barnett lined a single back up the middle to score the first run. Sauve worked a walk with the bases loaded before West slapped drove a double to right-centerfield and Jace Rinehart followed line a two-RBI single to left to cut the deficit to two, 15-13.

The Mountaineers reclaimed the lead in the seventh when senior Jace Rinehart delivered an opposite field three-run home run for the 16-15 advantage.

West Virginia added three insurance runs in the eight. Swain led the inning with a single, Barnett line a one-out RBI single to centerfield, and with two outs on the board West and Rinehart produce RBI singles for the 19-15 lead.

West Virginia freshman Mac Stiffler took the mound in the fifth and cooled the BYU bats, holding the Cougars to one hit in two innings.

Then, senior Jack Kartsonas entered in the seventh and faced the minimum with two strikeouts but found himself in a bit of trouble in the eighth after giving up a hit and a walk. However, the senior hunkered down with a strikeout and got Anderson to hit into an inning double play on the 0-2 pitch.

Kartsonas left two on and an out on the board before sophomore reliever Chase Meyer shut down any opportunity for the Cougars as the Mountaineers held on for the 19-6 decision.

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