No. 12 WVU collapses (again) in loss to Kansas State on Friday

West Virginia entered Friday night’s game one against Kansas State with a lot to play for this weekend in terms of program records and a potential Big 12 Conference title.

After suffering a midweek loss to Pitt on Tuesday in which WVU led by four runs entering the bottom of the ninth, the Mountaineers seemed like a team truly scuffling for the first time all year as they entered the night having lost three of their last five.

WVU once again entered the ninth inning with a sizeable lead, as they led 7-2 on Friday.

Then, after their defense had been great all night, costly errors hurt WVU as they collapsed for the second game in a row. The Wildcats sent 11 batters to the plate in the ninth, scoring six runs on six hits and an error, as Keegan O'Connor homered and then singled to walk-off the Mountaineers, 8-7.

It was a battle of left-handers on the mound on Friday as both Jacob Frost for Kansas State and Griffin Kirn for West Virginia were on early.

Frost recorded nine outs on 35 pitches through three innings, while Kirn recorded nine outs on 36 total pitches as the game was scoreless through three innings.

West Virginia was able to get to Frost in the fourth, as Logan Sauve singled, after he entered the weekend with three hits in his last 28 at-bats. Sam White followed it up with a double of the wall to score Sauve, putting WVU ahead 1-0. The next batter, Jace Rinehart, hit a ball in almost the same spot as White, but his cleared the fence, traveling 403-feet for a two-run home run, his eighth of the season as the Mountaineers led 3-0.

Kirn would use the run support and give the Mountaineers a shutdown inning in the bottom half of the inning, as he needed eight pitches to get three quick outs.

The Mountaineers then used a break to add to their lead in the fifth. Kyle West appeared to whiff on a strike three, but it was ruled a foul ball as it hit the K-State catcher’s mitt. West then doubled, before Sauve singled, driving in his 31st run of the season, putting WVU in front 4-0.

Kansas State’s offense was able to get going to an extent in the bottom of the inning as a leadoff triple was followed by a hit-by-pitch, putting runners on the corners with no outs.

Head coach Steve Sabins paid a visit to Kirn on the mound, and Kirn responded by giving Sabins and the Mountaineers a strikeout, followed by an inning-ending double play. The double play was WVU’s third of the night, as it hit off Kirn’s glove, going to Brodie Kresser at shortstop, who flipped it to Spencer Barnett as WVU got out of the inning without any damage.

In the seventh, Kirn would work himself into more trouble, as he hit the first batter of the inning and was down 3-1 to Dee Kennedy, who singled and tripled in each of his first two at-bats. Kirn would get another groundball, this one hit right back to him, turning a 1-4-3 double play.

That would prove to be a big pair of outs, as the next batter doubled, and then Bear Madliak hit a two-run home run to left field, cutting WVU’s lead to 4-2.

The Mountaineers started the eighth inning with a double by Sauve, followed by a groundball from White to advance Sauve to third. After an intentional walk, Chase Swain brought home Sauve. Swain then advanced to second on a passed ball, before he scored on an error on a groundball from Grant Hussey that was hit into right field into KSU's shift on him, and then a bad throw allowed Swain to score, putting WVU up 6-2.

Kirn's night ended after the seventh, with him allowing two earned runs on seven hits, while he struck out three. Frost was almost able to make it to seven full innings as he finished the night going 6.2 innings pitched, striking out nine, while he allowed four runs on nine hits.

Reese Bassinger came into the game in the eighth for Kirn, and he allowed a walk to the first batter he faced. Have no fear, though, as WVU's defense turned their fifth double play of the night, a 5-4-3 turn with Swain on the starting end of it with a sliding play at third. Bassinger ended up tossing a scoreless eighth, keeping WVU's 6-2 lead intact.

WVU added another run in the ninth, as Kresser walked, before he eventually scored on an RBI single from West. West finished the game going 3-for-5 at the dish, while Sauve went 3-for-5 as well.

Bassinger stayed in the game in the ninth as WVU held to their five-run lead. He gave up a leadoff home run to Keegan O'Connor and then a single to Seth Dardar, as the collapse on Tuesday against Pitt in the ninth seemed to be working itself into Friday night.

The next batter, Kennedy, doubled, as KSU trailed 7-3 and had runners on second and third with no outs.

The next batter hit a high chopper to Kresser at shortstop, allowing the runner on third to score, and it also put runners on first and second with no outs, bringing the tying run to the plate. That would finally end Bassinger's night, as KSU trailed 7-4, with Carson Estridge coming into the game to face Madliak.

Madliak hit a ground ball to Kresser, who slid on a knee to his right, but Kresser's throw to Barnett at second was a bad one, allowing KSU to put the tying run on first base with no outs and WVU leading 7-5. The very next pitch, it was Swain who had a ground ball hit to him, and he booted it, allowing another run to score. Kansas State would then try to give the Mountaineers an out to advance the runners, but a wild pitch allowed the runners to advance to second and third with no outs. Estridge would end the at-bat by walking the batter, loading the bases with no outs.

Kansas State tied the game on a high chopper that WVU was able to get an out on, before O'Connor stepped to the plate for the second time in the inning with the bases loaded and one out.

O'Connor was down in the count 1-2 before he pounded a ball off the base of the right field wall, allowing the winning run to score.

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