CHARLESTON – West Virginia Wesleyan College fell to the University of Charleston, 7-0, on Friday afternoon at the Welch Athletic Complex in game one of a doubleheader as UC’s Tyson Willis had a dominant one-hit complete game shutout to stifle the Bobcats’ offense in Mountain East Conference play.
Willis was nearly untouchable on the mound, striking out seven and not issuing a single walk across seven innings of work. The Bobcats (12-27, 6-16 MEC) mustered only one hit in the contest — a fifth-inning single by Kohei Fujishita — as their lineup was silenced in order in five of seven frames.
Charleston took control early, plating four runs in the third inning and three more in the fourth to pull away. The Golden Eagles tallied 10 hits on the day, including a towering solo home run by Carter Rust to lead off the bottom of the fourth.
Alex Hernandez (2-5) started for Wesleyan and pitched a complete game in the loss, allowing 10 hits and seven runs (six earned) over six innings, while striking out one and walking two. Despite the scoreline, Hernandez showed flashes of resilience and recorded 10 outs via fly balls.
Charleston capped off a dominant doubleheader sweep by overpowering Wesleyan, 13-1, in Game 2.
Charleston jumped ahead early, scoring in five of six offensive innings. The Golden Eagles plated three in the second, six in the third, and added four more across the fourth through sixth frames to overwhelm the Bobcats.
Casey Finck delivered another standout performance, going 3-for-3 with four RBIs, including his second home run of the day — a two-run shot to right field in the second inning.
The Bobcats’ lone run came in the top of the fifth when Luke Burner singled and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Drew Jrolf. Wesleyan had seven hits but left nine runners on base and committed five defensive errors across the game.
Charleston starter Mason Behn (3-2) went five strong innings, limiting the Bobcats to four hits and one earned run while walking three. Relievers William VanMeter and Mac Crismond combined for two scoreless frames to secure the win.
Anthony Hernandez took the loss for Wesleyan after surrendering nine runs (four earned) on nine hits in just 2.2 innings. Relievers Andrew Napolean and Davis Weppler each gave up additional runs as Charleston capitalized on poor defensive support.
