No. 17 West Virginia Slams Penn State
Morgantown, WV - The West Virginia Mountaineers (30-11) got their revenge over the Penn State Nittany Lions (23-12) Tuesday night with dominating 14-2 decision after dropping the first meeting between the two programs two weeks ago. West Virginia’s win was propelled by a pair of grand slams early in the contest.
“This was one we definitely had circled because we gave them the game at their place and, I don’t really get mad about losing a lot but that game I was fired up for some reason,” said West Virginia second baseman J.J. Wetherholt. “I was embarrassed, honestly. I hated that loss so much. I definitely wanted to get this time and I think a lot of guys kind of felt that way – like we had a little chip on our shoulders today, we just wanted to get after them.”
In the bottom of the third inning with one out and the bases loaded, the nearly capacity crowd at Monongalia County Ballpark rose to their feet as All-American candidate J.J Wetherholt walked towards the batter’s box.
Wetherholt returned to action Sunday in the fourth inning as a pinch-hitter in the series finale win over TCU and returned to the starting lineup as a designated hitter Tuesday night.
On the 1-1 pitch, Wetherholt delivered with a drive well over the right field wall for the grand slam to put the Mountaineers on the board and the 4-0 lead.
It’s been like that since the first day of fall practice. So, there’s nothing he does that surprised me at this point,” said West Virginia head coach Randy Mazey. “The laws of averages tell you you’re not able to do what he’s doing but he’s doing it in spite of that. He’s playing with a tremendous amount of confidence. He always has. The guys are rallying around him.”
Apr 25, 2023; Sophomore J.J. Wetherholt reacts after ripping a grand slam against Penn State in the bottom of the third inning.
Julia Mellett - Sports Illustrated: FanNation - Mountaineers Now
West Virginia broke the game open in the fourth, producing eight runs on five hits. Wetherholt started the scoring when he returned to the plate with the bases loaded and was approximately 15 feet from his second grand slam of the evening but settled for a sacrifice RBI. The Mountaineers need the bulk of their damage with two outs. Caleb McNeely ripped a two RBI single, Ellis Garcia followed with an infield RBI single, and Grant Hussey lifted a grand slam as the Mountaineers extended their lead, 12-1.
“What an unbelievable atmosphere again,” said Mazey. “People are having so much fun watching West Virginia baseball right now. I can’t imagine there’s been a better time in the history of West Virginia baseball with atmosphere and we’re winning games, and people are having fun.”
Julia Mellett - Sports Illustrated: FanNation - Mountaineers Now
Wetherholt tripled in the fifth and Landon Wallace scored him with a single into right field, then Logan Sauve added leadoff home run in the sixth to give West Virginia a 14-2 advantage.
Freshman right-hander Carson Estridge got the start for the Mountaineers and went three and two thirds and recorded three strikeouts. Freshman Gavin Van Kempem collected the win and improved to 3-0 on the season in two innings of work while Grant Siegel Cole, Fehrman and Carlson Reed combined for three hitless innings to close the game as West Virginia cruises to a 14-2 victory.
The Mountaineers are back in action Friday night in the first of a three-game series versus the Baylor Bears with the first pitch set for 7:30 p.m. EST and streaming on ESPN+.
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