Shanna Rose | WV Sports Chat
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team made history on Saturday afternoon as the Mountaineers routed Cal Poly 17-1 to advance to Omaha for the College World Series for the first time in program history.
Ben Lumsden had three hits and five RBIs, including two home runs for WVU (45-15). Gavin Kelly had three hits while Armani Guzman finished with two hits and three RBIs, including his first home run of the season.
Maxx Yehl (9-2) earned the win, giving up one run on four hits through five innings. David Hagen pitched two scoreless frames while Ian Korn and Ben McDougal each pitched a scoreless inning.
Carson Turnquist (9-3) suffered the loss for the Mustangs (39-24), giving up six runs on four hits in one inning of work.
Cal Poly jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first on Ryan Tayman’s sacrifice fly, but the lead didn’t last long.
The Mountaineers used a seven-run second inning to take control. Matthew Graveline scored on a double steal to tie the game. Then Lumsden blasted a three-run home run to deep left field and Tyrus Hall followed with a solo shot. A base hit from Sean Smith and Graveline’s ground out extended WVU’s lead to 7-1.
In the third, Guzman’s two-run home run and Paul Schoenfeld’s RBI single pushed the lead to 10-1.
Lumsden went deep again in the fourth, giving the Mountaineers a 12-1 advantage.
WVU added on two runs in the fifth and sixth and a final run in the seventh.
“The Mountaineers are going to Omaha, 135 years in the making,” Mountaineer head coach Steve Sabins said. “Pretty special to be part of something that’s never been done in history before. The credit goes to these kids and the players before us and the fans and the supporters and the donors and the administration and the folks that cover this and the auxiliary staff. So many people help build a program.”
WVU scored its 17 runs on a season-high 19 hits, with eight of those going for extra bases.
As the final outs were recorded, the celebration began for a program that had spent 135 years chasing a trip to Omaha. On Saturday, the Mountaineers finally made history.
Photo Credit: Shanna Rose
