Shanna Rose | WV Sports Chat
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – No. 1 seed West Virginia scored 10 unanswered runs and received six strong innings from Chansen Cole to defeat No. 4-seed Binghamton, 10-1, on Friday afternoon in the opening round of the NCAA Morgantown Regional at Kendrick Family Ballpark.
Cole (9-1) allowed one run on four hits over six innings, while Hagen earned his first save with three hitless, scoreless innings of relief for the Mountaineers (40-14).
Ben Lumsden reached base four times with two hits and two walks, including a home run. He had three RBIs and scored two runs. Armani Guzman had two hits and drove in three runs.
Conner Griffin (3-4) suffered the loss for the Bearcats (31-21), surrendering four runs on three hits in just three innings.
Zack Kent led off the second with a double and scored on a fielder’s choice to give Binghamton a 1-0 lead.
After stranding runners in the third, WVU’s bats came to life in the fourth. Sean Smith was hit by a pitch to begin the inning before Matthew Graveline’s two-run blast made it 2-1. Guzman doubled and Brodie Kresser walked, setting the stage for Lumsden’s home run, giving the Mountaineers a 5-1 edge.
Cole worked out of a jam in the fifth and pitched a three-up, three-down sixth.
In the bottom half, WVU tacked on five insurance runs to take a 10-1 advantage. Lumsden led off the inning with a base hit and Tyrus Hall doubled to put runners on second and third. With one out, Gavin Kelly doubled, scoring Hall and Lumsden. Binghamton pitchers hit consecutive batters, and both later scored on Guzman’s double down the left field line.
Hagen closed out the game with two 1-2-3 innings in the eighth and ninth.
The win sends the Mountaineers into the winner’s bracket, where they will face No. 2 seed Kentucky on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET. The Bearcats will meet third-seeded Wake Forest in an elimination game at noon.
Photo Credit: Shanna Rose
