The West Virginia University baseball team lost to Kentucky, 11-9, in the NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game on May 30. The Mountaineers, now 40-15, will face Wake Forest in an elimination game on Sunday at noon. Kentucky improves to 33-21 and advances to the regional final scheduled for Sunday at 5 p.m.
Sophomore Gavin Kelly hit two home runs—his third multi-home run game of the season—and drove in three runs. Junior Tyrus Hall contributed with two hits, two runs batted in, and scored twice. Junior Armani Guzman reached base four times and crossed home plate twice.
Redshirt junior Maxx Yehl started for West Virginia but lasted only two-thirds of an inning after allowing four unearned runs before leaving due to injury. Graduate student Ian Korn gave up four runs (two earned) over three and two-thirds innings, while graduate student Reese Bassinger took the loss after surrendering three runs across three innings.
Kentucky established a six-run lead after two innings before Kelly put West Virginia on the scoreboard with a two-run homer in the third inning. In the fourth frame, Hall hit an RBI double and later scored on a balk; another run was forced home when a batter was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Guzman walked and eventually scored following a stolen base and throwing error in the fifth inning. Kentucky regained its lead with two more runs that same inning. The Mountaineers tied it again with single runs in both the sixth—on Kelly’s solo homer—and seventh as Hall delivered another key double.
Kentucky responded by scoring three times in the eighth inning to retake control of the game. Although West Virginia managed one more run due to an error and brought the tying run to bat during their last opportunity, they were unable to complete their comeback.