The West Virginia State University baseball team split a twinbill with Slippery Rock (Pa.) at Critchfield Park on Saturday afternoon. The Yellow Jackets won the first game, 9-5, before being held at bay in the second, 8-5.
Postgame Records
WVSU: 2-1
SRU: 1-1
Game 1: WVSU 9, SRU 5, Final/7
- Two Yellow Jackets collected multiple hits. Senior catcher Andrew Massey went 2-for-4 with a homerun, two RBI, and one run scored. Junior shortstop Brett Christian also went 2-for-4 with a double.
- First baseman Matt Harrison went 1-for-2 with a double and drew two walks. He touched home plate four times.
- Pitcher Ethan Lauchart was credited with the win after surviving three innings on the mound. Senior Jacob Bradley got the last three outs of the game. He gave up two hits in the last inning, but struck out three to preserve the win.
Quick Recap
West Virginia State went up two runs in the top of the first with Antonio Brown and Trey Junkins each driving in one. The Rock got one run back in the bottom half of the first, 2-1. Each team picked up one run in the third inning, 3-2. In the fifth, both Brown and Junkins knocked in runs again before Slippery Rock knocked in three, 5-5. A solo shot over the left field fence by Massey in the sixth gave the lead back to WVSU, 6-5. Three insurance runs were added in the top of the seventh to secure the victory.
Game 2: SRU 8, WVSU 5, Final/7
- WVSU managed to score five runs on four hits and six errors made by Slippery Rock.
- The Rock’s Luke Trueman threw a one-hitter through five innings.
- Shortstop Brett Christian made five assists and two putouts from the middle of the infield.
Quick Recap
A costly SRU throwing error in the top of the first allowed WVSU to score two runs on a fielder’s choice and a groundout. Both Andrew Stone and Matt Harrison were quick to react from third base on the way to home plate.The lead was relinquished in the bottom of the second when Slippery Rock scored three runs, 3-2. Three additional runs were tacked on in the third inning, 6-2. A two-run bottom of the fifth left the Yellow Jackets with six runs to make up in the last two innings, 8-2. In the top of the seventh, Harrison brought a baserunner home from second with a single up the middle before he scored from third on a fielding error, 8-4. A sacrifice fly scored one more and left Junkins stranded at first. Austin Martin singled through the left side of the infield, moving Junkins over to second, before the rally ended with the game’s final out.