West Virginia knew it was going to be a challenge against No. 6 LSU on Saturday in game one of the Super Regional, facing Kade Anderson, a projected top pick in this year’s MLB Draft.
The Mountaineers battled through the early part of the game before the Tigers blew things open in the middle innings. They hurt themselves on the mound all afternoon long, and while they got to Anderson at the plate, their pitching struggles were magnified during the middle innings.
West Virginia allowed 16 runs between the 4th-6th innings as they fell, 16-9, in game one of their best-of-three Super Regional series at Alex Box Stadium.
West Virginia ended the game with nine runs on 11 hits, while LSU scored 16 runs on nine hits.
The game hung in the balance in the fifth inning. WVU starting pitcher Griffin Kirn’s pitch count was at the 82-pitch mark, as he allowed a single to LSU’s Josh Pearson. West Virginia head coach Steve Sabins then made a big decision, taking Griffin Kirn out, with WVU trailing 3-1.
Instead of putting one of his better relievers in, he turned to JJ Glasscock, who had pitched six total innings on the season. Glasscock allowed a walk, and then was down 2-0 on the next batter, Jared Jones, as Sabins made another move. This time, he went with Cole Fehrman, who had pitched 6.2 innings as a total this season. Fehrman did not fare much better, giving up a grand slam to Steven Milam, blowing the game open, as LSU took a 7-1 lead. It would only get worse from there, as the Tigers added three more runs in the inning, ending the fifth with a 10-1 lead.
The first seven batters LSU sent to the plate in the fifth all scored, sending 11 total batters to the plate in the inning.
The control issues of WVU’s pitching staff hurt the Mountaineers all afternoon long, as out of LSU’s first 11 runs, seven of those runners reached base via a walk or hit by pitch.
Things only got worse for WVU in the sixth inning, as another grand slam snuck over the right field fence, with the Tigers putting up six runs in the inning, a combined 13 runs between the sixth and seventh innings.
WVU’s pitchers ended up walking eight runners on the afternoon, while they hit five more.
The Mountaineers got to Anderson in the sixth and seventh innings, as in the sixth, they plated four runs. Skylar King singled to score two runs, before Chase Swain singled home another run, and Brodie Kresser reached on a fielder’s choice, before a throwing error allowed a run to score, putting the game at 10-5 at the time.
That’s until LSU took advantage of WVU’s issues on the mound, as two runs were walked home before the second grand slam of the game from Pearson in the bottom of the sixth.
In the seventh, it was Gavin Kelly hitting his second home run of the season, a two-run shot, as WVU trailed 16-7.
Kirn’s day ended with him throwing 82 pitches across four innings, allowing four total runs, and he threw only 47 strikes. Glasscock threw one strike on nine pitches, while Fehrman threw seven strikes on 16 pitches. Tyler Hutson then came into the game as he pitched 1.1 innings, throwing 12 strikes on 23 pitches. The trend unfortunately continued for WVU with Luke Lyman as he tossed 45 total pitches, with 22 total strikes thrown.
Game two of the series is set for Sunday at 6:00 p.m. With a win, WVU forces a game three. With a loss, they are eliminated, and LSU advances to the College World Series.
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