By: Shanna Rose
CLEMSON, S.C.- The No. 2-seeded West Virginia University baseball team rallied for the second straight game to defeat No. 1 Clemson 9-6 and advance to the Clemson Regional Championship on Saturday night at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
With two outs, Grant Hussey walked and head coach Steve Sabins put Jorge Valdes in to pinch run. Sam White then doubled, giving the Mountaineers a 6-5 lead. Ben Lumsden extended the lead to 7-5 with a base hit to right field. Brodie Kresser beat out an infield single before the Tigers walked the next two batters.
Clemson wasn’t going to go down without a fight. With two outs Cam Cannarella singled up the middle and things fell apart for Meyer, who walked the next three batters. Ben McDougal came on and struck out the final batter and sealed WVU’s second straight trip to the regional final.
Kresser led the Mountaineers (43-14) with four hits. White had three hits and drove in two runs.
Meyer earned his ninth win of the season, pitching 2.1 innings and giving up one run on one hit. McDougal earned his second save.
Cannarella had four hits and three RBI for the Tigers (45-17).
In the first, Skylar King reached after being hit by a pitch. Logan Sauve singled to left center and then stole second. With runners on second and third, Kyle West grounded out, allowing King to score. Jace Rinehart’s double down the right field line gave WVU a 2-0 lead. Sam White’s base hit extended the lead to 3-0.
In the fifth, the Mountaineers made it 4-0 when Sauve’s base hit scored Kresser.
Things went south in the sixth inning for WVU. Jack Kartsonas gave up a leadoff single and Cannarella blasted a two-run home run. With one out, Carson Estridge came on for Kartsonas and hit the first batter he faced before walking the next batter.
Reese Basinger relieved Estridge and gave up a double to Jack Crighton, pulling Clemson within one. Jacob Jarrell’s sacrifice fly tied the game 4-4.
The Mountaineers had a chance to regain the lead in the seventh after a leadoff double from King but failed to do so.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Tigers took a 5-4 lead. With the bases loaded and one out, Chase Meyer came in and got a double play to end the inning.
WVU refused to go away and Guzman’s double scored Kresser and tied the game at 5-5.
The Mountaineers will play the winner of the Clemson/ Kentucky game at 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Photo Credit: WVU Athletics
