Mountaineers Take Down Grand Canyon to Advance to Super Regional - West Virginia University Athletics (2024)

TUCSON, Ariz. – For the first time in program history, the West Virginia University baseball team has advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals after defeating Grand Canyon, 10-6, Sunday night in the Tucson Regional Final at Hi Corbett Field.

"To win a regional like this, we represent a ton of people," head coach Randy Mazey said. "Not just our university and the community but 1.8 million people in the state of West Virginia that I know are really proud of all of these guys right now and all they accomplished."

The Mountaineers are now 36-22 on the season and will play in a Super Regional next week in either Chapel Hill, North Carolina or Baton Rouge, Louisiana, depending on the result of Monday's game between UNC and LSU.

After getting great pitching in the first two games of the Tucson Regional, Sunday was all about the bats as West Virginia had 17 hits, including three hits apiece from sophom*ore Logan Sauve and junior JJ Wetherholt.

Sauve ended the night with three RBI and three runs scored while sophom*ore Sam White, senior Reed Chumley, and junior Grant Hussey each knocked in two runs. Sophom*ore Ben Lumsden, freshman Spencer Barnett, and sophom*ore Skylar King all added a pair of hits for the Mountaineers.

Junior Aidan Major earned the win by allowing just one run in 4.2 innings, making his first appearance since May 5 against Cincinnati, while sophom*ore Carson Estridge struck out four in 3.2 innings. After throwing a complete game on Friday, senior Derek Clark came in to get the final two outs of the ballgame, striking out two of the three batters he faced.

The Mountaineers jumped out to an early lead with two runs in the first as Chumley hit a sacrifice fly and Hussey had an RBI single. The lead did not last long for WVU as Grand Canyon scored three in the home half, forcing Major to make an early relief appearance where he was able to limit the damage to just a sacrifice fly after coming in with the bases loaded and nobody out.

West Virginia answered in the second with three runs on RBI singles from Sauve, White, and Chumley. The Mountaineers extended the lead in each of the next three innings, scoring two in the third, one in the fourth, and two in the fifth to take a 10-3 lead.

The Lopes got one run back in the fifth before Estridge came in and ended a bases-loaded threat with a strikeout.

In the ninth, GCU hit a two-run home run and got another runner on before Mazey turned to Clark. After allowing a single to his first batter, he struck out the next guy on three pitches before ending the game with a dotted 3-2 91-mph fastball on the inside corner.

Clark was named the Tucson Regional Most Outstanding Player while Sauve, Chumley, and junior pitcher Tyler Switalski were named to the All-Tournament Team.

For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.