SAN DIEGO — Harrison Musgrave struck out eight batters over six innings of five-hit pitching and West Virginia produced 14 hits during a 6-2 win over San Diego State on Friday night.
Playing at Tony Gwynn Stadium, and playing against coach Tony Gwynn’s team, the Mountaineers leveled their record at 2-2 and reached double-digits in hits for the fourth consecutive game. Second baseman Billy Fleming and left fielder Jacob Rice each went 3-for-5.
“That’s as good of a game as any team can play,” coach Randy Mazey said. “We had 14 hits and Harrison did his thing again.”
The junior left-hander, let down by the bullpen in a season-opening loss to Louisville, threw 93 pitches against the Aztecs but recorded his final out by picking off Ryan Muno at first base to end the sixth. Musgrave (1-0) walked only one batter and departed with a 3-2 lead.
“He had a great night and got to his pitch count, but this time we got some good relief pitching,” Mazey said.
Seniors Pascal Paul and Corey Walter combined for three innings of no-hit relief.
Taylor Munden’s sac-fly in the seventh, which followed a leadoff double by Max Nogay, extended the lead to 4-2.
Back-to-back two-out RBI singles by Fleming and Ryan McBroom in the ninth gave West Virginia more cushion.
Aggressive base running by Rice put the Mountaineers ahead 1-0 in the second. He led off with a single, took third on a single by Shaun Wood and then outran San Diego State pitcher Mike Robards (1-1) to home plate after a wild pitch.
West Virginia’s lead stood until the bottom of the fourth, when Musgrave’s only rough spot included Ty France’s two-out, two-run bloop double to right field, which plopped between Fleming and Wood.
San Diego State’s lead was erased in WVU’s next at-bat thanks to Munden’s one-out solo home run in the fifth, which tied the game at 2-all. Followed-up singles by Bobby Boyd and Fleming preceded McBroom’s sac-fly that gave the Mountaineers the 3-2 lead.
Evan Potter’s one-out double gave San Diego State a chance in the bottom of the fifth, but WVU third baseman Justin Fox scooped up a sharp grounder by Aztecs leadoff hitter Greg Allen for the second out before Tim Zier flied out.
“We played unbelievable defense, everybody in the infield got a ground ball and made some pretty tough plays,” Mazey said. “If that is the Mountaineer team that shows up everyday, we have a chance to win a lot of games.
Robards surrendered four runs on nine hits in six innings with no walks and four strikeouts for the Aztecs, who fell to 3-2.
The three-game series continues with 9 p.m. Eastern start on Saturday.