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West Virginia State University Athletics

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BSB24 Huber
Photo: Scott Abbott
14
Fairmont State FAIR 20-29
15
Winner West Virginia State WVSU 31-19
Fairmont State FAIR
20-29
14
Final
15
West Virginia State WVSU
31-19
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Fairmont State FAIR 4 0 0 2 2 5 1 0 0 14 16 1
West Virginia State WVSU 1 3 0 3 2 0 2 4 X 15 17 5

W: Lewis, Camron (4-1) L: Will Knight (3-4)

Game Recap: Baseball | | James Garcia, Sports Information Director

STATE ADVANCES TO CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – West Virginia State baseball (31-19) outlasted Fairmont State (20-29) in an elimination game at the MEC Tournament on Saturday evening to advance to Championship Sunday. WVSU erased a three-deficit in the bottom of the eighth to pull off a 15-14 comeback victory. The Yellow Jackets will now have a shot at claiming a conference championship if they can defeat Charleston twice on Sunday.

State and Fairmont engaged in an absolute slugfest with 29 runs and 33 hits between the two teams before a winner was determined. First baseman Mike Huber played a part in 11-of-15 runs scored by WVSU. He went 4-for-4 with two home runs, one double, seven runs batted in and four runs scored. Second baseman Michael Bittinger was State's second biggest contributor, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs and three runs. The Yellow Jackets combined for an astonishing eight doubles with shortstop Kyle Waters and catcher Tyler Overaitis hitting two each.

The outcome of the game was in question for the entirety of the nine-inning contest. The Falcons put up four runs in the top of the first only for the Yellow Jackets to tie the score in the bottom of the second. Huber singled to center field with two outs to drive in Waters and Bittinger from second and third, respectively, and knot the score at 4-4.

A two-run top of the fourth by Fairmont briefly gave the Falcons the lead, 6-4, before State changed it with three runs scored in the bottom of the fourth. A trio of doubles in succession by Huber, Nathan Paulsen and Overaitis scored one run each to put WVSU back on top, 7-6.

The lead was traded once again in the fifth inning. FSU went up 8-7 with two runs plated in the top half of the inning. Huber then restored the lead to the Yellow Jackets with a two-run shot to right center in the bottom half of the inning, 9-8.

Fairmont gained a sizable advantage in the top of the sixth by scoring five runs, 13-9. The first four batters of the half inning reached base with three walks and one hit by pitch. A costly throwing error later in the inning resulted in two unearned runs being scored. 

To make matters worse for State, the Yellow Jackets came up empty in the bottom of the sixth. The Falcons then tacked on another run with a sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh to increase the deficit to five runs, 14-9.

Huber handed his team a lifeline with another two-run jack with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, 14-11. Reliever Camron Lewis retired the side in order in the top of the eighth to give WVSU a fighting chance. 

State seized the opportunity at hand in the bottom of the eighth. Bittinger drove in the first two runs with a single into right field, 14-13. Cody Rinehart hit a sacrifice fly into right field, allowing Ethan Spolarich to score the tying run. Bittinger ended up scoring the go-ahead run by capitalizing on a wild pitch, 15-14.

Lewis remained on the mound in the top of the ninth. He struck out the first batter before giving up a single and hitting a batter with a pitch. He struck out the next batter before Nate Paulsen became the hero of the game. Fairmont's Zach Brennan hit a ball to shallow center field that looked likely to drop for an RBI-single. However, Paulsen rushed in at breakneck speed to snag the ball for the final out of the game.

The Yellow Jackets will play Charleston at 1 p.m. tomorrow in the final day of the MEC Tournament. The Golden Eagles are still undefeated in the tournament so State will need to beat its crosstown rivals twice to claim its second conference title in four years.
 
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