BECKLEY, W.VA. – For the third time in Mountain East Conference history and the 18th time in school history, West Virginia State Baseball is Conference Tournament Champions, sweeping Concord Sunday at Linda K. Epling Stadium. 

State rallied through adversity in the final month of its regular season and then suffered an opening round loss to battle through the consolation bracket to win the MEC Tournament title, and will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament, which begins May 27th at regional sites. 

WVSU  ( 32-8) made its fourth appearance in the MEC Title game since its inception in 2014, and wins its third MEC Tournament title after going back-to-back in 2014 and 2015. The Yellow Jackets have now won 18 conference tournament titles in program history, dating back to the days of the WVIAC.

The State bats came alive, pounding out 17 hits as they downed Concord 9-3 in the title game. Concord entered Sunday undefeated in the tournament, but State forced an "if necessary" contest after also winning 9-3 in the matinee.

Four Yellow Jackets collected three hits each, led by senior Andrew Stone who fell a double shy of the cycle and scored twice. His younger brother, Michael Stone, also cranked out three hits while driving in two, while outfielders Trey Junkins and Jared Hunt each registered three hits and scored twice.

Senior Matthew Kline was named MEC Tournament MVP, leading the Yellow Jackets with a nearly .400 average in tournament play. Andrew Stone, third baseman Christopher Jordan, and reliever Clark Reese were also dubbed to the All-Tournament squad.

Reese picked up his second win in as many appearances, moving to 3-0 on the season after tossing four innings of relief. He did not allow a single walk all tournament.

As with the first game, State attacked first, breaking the blank in the bottom of the third. Hunt led off the frame with a single to center field. After stealing second and then moving up on a groundout, he came home on a RBI groundout from shortstop Brett Christian to get WVSU on the board with a 1-0 lead.

The lead held until the sixth, when Concord used a leadoff double followed by a bunt single and came home on a double play groundout to even things at 1-1.

The tie was short lived as Stoney blasted his second homer of the day- and tournament leading third of the weekend- to put State back in the driver's seat in the bottom of that inning. The Yellow Jackets added insurance scoring four more times in the frame to take a 6-1 lead.

Junkins, who had earlier singled, came home on a single back up the middle from catcher Andrew Massey. Hunt boarded on a hit-by-pitch and scored on Christian's second RBI of the day. A triple from Michael Stone brought both Massey and Christian home, putting the Yellow Jackets in command.

A pair of doubles in the seventh gave the Mountain Lions another run, but State continued to carry their hot bats, slugging back-to-back-to-back extra-base hits.
Copycatting his brother, Andrew Stone tripled, scored on a Kline double, and then Kline scored on a yet another triple, this one from Junkins. Junkins then came home on a single from Hunt, putting State up 9-2.

Concord plated a run in the top of the ninth, but the threat was doused after a liner back to Andrew Stone at second base sealed the fate for State.

After registering the save in the opening contest, All-MEC First Team selection Ethan Lauchart turned around to start the finale, tossing five scoreless frames while striking out three.