WVU splits first two games at Arizona State
AP Photo/Rick Scuteri
West Virginia got its first taste of the Big 12’s best hitter in Landon Hairston and the 17th-ranked Mountaineers saw their six-game winning streak end following a 14-4 loss against No. 22 Arizona State on Friday night.
Hairston blasted two home runs, one of them a grand slam that broke the game open in the fourth inning. Arizona State’s left fielder finished 3 for 4 with eight RBIs.
It all allowed the Sun Devils to take the first game of a three-game series in a game that ended after eight innings due to the mercy rule. It was the first time WVU (17-5, 5-2) has been mercy ruled since April 23, 2022, in a 12-2 loss against Texas Tech.
WVU did bounce back with a 13-7 victory over the Sun Devils in the second game on Saturday thanks to seven strong innings from winning pitcher Maxx Yehl, who allowed three runs on five hits with no walks and four strikeouts.
Gavin Kelly was 3 for 5 with a home run and three RBIs and Sean Smith also had three hits and three RBIs for the Mountaineers (18-5, 6-2), who also got a double and two singles from Armani Guzman, a triple and two RBIs from Tyrus Hall, two hits from Matthew Graveline and a triple from Paul Schoenfeld.
Hairston added another home run and a double with two RBIS in the second game, but it wasn’t enough to prevent WVU from evening the series at 1-1 heading into Sunday night’s finale.
It was only the second home loss of the season for the Sun Devils (20-7, 5-3) who are 16-2 inside Phoenix Municipal Stadium in Tempe, Ariz.
Hairston entered Saturday’s game, which was broadcast on ESPN+, with a conference-leading .470 batting average and now as 14 home runs in Big 12 play.
Friday’s game was the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
WVU took a quick 1-0 lead in the first inning when Kelly ripped a double to left field to score Matt Ineich from first base.
Hairston tied the game in the bottom of the first with a solo home run.
In the second inning, Smith had an RBI single for the Mountaineers that gave WVU a 2-1 lead, which stood until the fourth inning.
WVU starting pitcher Dawson Montesa was still in the game at that point, but Nuu Contrades hit a 440-foot home run to left to begin the inning, which was followed by singles from Austen Roellig and Dominic Smaldino. Brody Briggs walked to load the bases and Ky McGary also walked for an RBI, before WVU head coach Steve Sabins went to Bryson Thacker out of the bullpen.
Thacker got four pitches in before Hairston hit the grand slam that gave the Sun Devils a 7-2 lead.
WVU did score a run in the fifth inning on Brodie Kresser’s RBI double and added another run in the sixth on Kelly’s second RBI double of the game, but by that time, Arizona State had already taken control.
Kelly finished 2 for 4 for WVU and took a 16-game hitting streak into Sunday’s game. Schoenfeld also had two hits for the Mountaineers and has a 12-game hitting streak. WVU and Arizona State finished with 13 hits each.
The main difference was WVU pitchers combined to also allow nine walks and hit three more batters, while Arizona State pitchers only walked two and hit one batter.
WVU also stranded 11 runners.
Montesa (3-3) was charged with the loss. He went 3.1 innings, allowed five hits, six runs and walked four. WVU used seven relief pitchers behind him and they combined to give up eight more runs and two more home runs.
Arizona State relief pitcher Taylor Penn (4-0) earned the win. He pitched 2.2 innings, allowed five hits and one run.