BUCKHANNON — West Virginia Wesleyan baseball rallied for a comeback win in the opener and carried that momentum into a convincing nightcap victory, sweeping West Virginia State, 6-5 and 8-2, in a Mountain East Conference doubleheader Saturday at Hank Ellis Field.
Wesleyan showed two different paths to victory across the twinbill. In Game 1, the Bobcats erased a three-run deficit with a four-run fifth inning to steal the lead for good. In Game 2, Wesleyan struck quickly with a five-run first and never let West Virginia State climb back into the game.
In the opener, State built a 5-2 advantage through four and a half innings behind an 11-hit attack. Angel Oquendo paced the Yellow Jackets with two hits and three RBI, while Garrett Wagoner, Michael Bittinger, and Brodie Guenther each recorded two hits. Nate Bittinger added an RBI double and Ayden Youngblood chipped in an RBI single as State scored in the first, third, and fourth innings.
The Bobcats answered in the bottom of the fifth with the decisive surge. Grant Shumaker opened the inning with a single, and Coleman Cross followed by drawing a walk. After Isaac Lough moved both runners up with a sacrifice bunt, Matthew Neach struck out, leaving Wesleyan needing two outs to manufacture something big. Alex Smith then delivered an RBI single, and a Yellow Jacket error allowed another run to score and cut the deficit to 5-4. Josiah Segura followed with a walk, setting the table for Carter Collins, who laced a two-run double to put Wesleyan in front, 6-5.
That rally made a winner of Austin Mann, who was excellent in relief. After taking over for starter Drew Evans in the fifth, Mann tossed three scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out two and walking two to preserve the comeback victory. Evans worked the first four innings, and although he surrendered 10 hits and five runs, he kept Wesleyan within striking distance long enough for the offense to respond. Hunter McSweeney handled the sixth for West Virginia State after Jared Nethercutt took the loss.
Offensively in Game 1, Wesleyan made the most of six hits and four walks. Alex Smith went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, Collins finished with a double and two RBI, and Dylan Neach collected two hits and drove in a run. Shumaker also scored once, while Cross and Segura each came around to score during the pivotal fifth.
The second game belonged to the Bobcats almost immediately. Wesleyan sent nine men to the plate in the first inning and scored five times, capitalizing on patience at the plate, aggressive baserunning, and some early wildness from the Yellow Jackets. Grant Shumaker ignited the rally with a leadoff single and later stole both second and third. Isaac Lough walked, Matthew Neach drew a free pass, Alex Smith lifted a sacrifice fly, Carter Collins plated two with a single that was misplayed in left, and Dylan Neach capped the inning with an RBI single for a 5-0 lead.
Wesleyan added another run in the third when Alex Smith singled, advanced on a stolen base and a wild pitch, and scored on another wild pitch. The Bobcats padded the margin again in the fifth. Smith was hit by a pitch, Segura singled, and Dylan Neach delivered another RBI hit before a passed ball brought home Segura for the eighth and final run.
Drake Long earned the Game 2 win with 5.1 innings of work. He allowed one run on five hits, struck out two, and worked around four walks. Andrew Napoleon followed with an inning of relief, and Bryson Peffer closed it out over the final two-thirds, striking out two. West Virginia State starter C. Reed was tagged with the loss after being charged with five runs in the opening inning.
Dylan Neach led the Wesleyan offense in the nightcap, going 2-for-3 with two RBI and a stolen base. Shumaker also had two hits and swiped two bags, Alex Smith scored twice and drove in one, Segura scored twice, and Collins added two RBI. The Bobcats finished with eight hits, drew five walks, and pressured the Yellow Jackets throughout with smart baserunning and productive situational hitting.
For West Virginia State in Game 2, Brodie Guenther reached base three times with a hit and two walks, while Wagoner, Oquendo, Aidan Paulsen, and Youngblood each had one hit. The Yellow Jackets threatened at times, loading the bases in the first and putting runners aboard in the fifth, sixth, and seventh, but Wesleyan turned three double plays and limited the damage effectively.
Wesleyan travels to University of Akron for a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Tuesday, Apr. 7.
