BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (March 2, 2024) – The West Virginia University baseball team split a doubleheader with Western Kentucky on Saturday at Nick Denes Field. The Mountaineers won the first game, 8-3, while the Hilltoppers responded with a 7-6 victory in the nightcap. Both teams are now 7-5 on the season.
The first game was back-and-forth early on as WKU scored in the first before junior Grant Hussey hit a home run in the second to even things up.
The Hilltoppers retook the lead in the third with a run but an RBI double from sophomore Benjamin Lumsden and a run-scoring groundout by Hussey in the fourth put West Virginia back on top. WKU evened things up once again in the home half.
The Mountaineers took the lead for good in the sixth as the 8-9 hitters came up with big two-out hits. Sophomore Nick Barone gave WVU the lead with a two-run single before coming around to score on a double from freshman Spencer Barnett.
West Virginia added a pair of insurance runs in the ninth on a Lumsden groundout and Ellis Garcia single.
Graduate student Hambleton Oliver earned the win with 4.2 scoreless innings in relief, not allowing a hit while striking out five.
In game two, the Mountaineers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on a sacrifice fly by Lumsden and single by Garcia, but the Hilltoppers responded with four runs in the home half to take the lead after one inning.
In the fourth, sophomore Logan Sauve was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to get the Mountaineers within one.
Western Kentucky extended its lead back to three with two runs in the fifth. WVU answered with two runs of its own in the sixth on RBI singles from senior Reed Chumley and Lumsden.
The Hilltoppers pushed their lead back to two with an unearned run in the sixth which was needed as Lumsden got WVU back within one in the ninth as he hit his third home run of the season, but that was all the Mountaineers could muster.
The injury bug also hit the Mountaineers on Saturday as Hussey left game one early before Sauve exited early in the second game.
First pitch for Sunday’s game between the two teams is set for 1 p.m. ET.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The first game was back-and-forth early on as WKU scored in the first before junior Grant Hussey hit a home run in the second to even things up.
The Hilltoppers retook the lead in the third with a run but an RBI double from sophomore Benjamin Lumsden and a run-scoring groundout by Hussey in the fourth put West Virginia back on top. WKU evened things up once again in the home half.
The Mountaineers took the lead for good in the sixth as the 8-9 hitters came up with big two-out hits. Sophomore Nick Barone gave WVU the lead with a two-run single before coming around to score on a double from freshman Spencer Barnett.
West Virginia added a pair of insurance runs in the ninth on a Lumsden groundout and Ellis Garcia single.
Graduate student Hambleton Oliver earned the win with 4.2 scoreless innings in relief, not allowing a hit while striking out five.
In game two, the Mountaineers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on a sacrifice fly by Lumsden and single by Garcia, but the Hilltoppers responded with four runs in the home half to take the lead after one inning.
In the fourth, sophomore Logan Sauve was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to get the Mountaineers within one.
Western Kentucky extended its lead back to three with two runs in the fifth. WVU answered with two runs of its own in the sixth on RBI singles from senior Reed Chumley and Lumsden.
The Hilltoppers pushed their lead back to two with an unearned run in the sixth which was needed as Lumsden got WVU back within one in the ninth as he hit his third home run of the season, but that was all the Mountaineers could muster.
The injury bug also hit the Mountaineers on Saturday as Hussey left game one early before Sauve exited early in the second game.
First pitch for Sunday’s game between the two teams is set for 1 p.m. ET.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
