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New season and fresh start await WVU in NCAA Regionals

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — With 39 wins and a Big 12 regular season co-championship, 2023 stands as the most successful season in Randy Mazey’s 11-year tenure as WVU head coach. The NCAA Tournament appearance is the Mountaineers’ third since 2017.

“Winning six out of eight Big 12 series and going on a roll where you sweep TCU at home, you beat Oklahoma at home and you beat Texas Tech at home, what we have done in this league is amazing,” said Mazey.

West Virginia lost consecutive games just twice this season prior to their current five-game losing streak. Mazey believes Monday’s selection show provides a new beginning after his team’s struggles over the last two weeks.

“I think we just sat through the reset button, just watching your name called on that,” Mazey said. “Did we spoil people for how good we played over the last two years? It sure seems like it.

“We lost our last three [regular season] games and that brought us down to normalcy with what everybody else has been doing.”

In West Virginia’s last two regional tournaments in 2017 and 2019, the Mountaineers won the opening game. The regional champion must win at least three games to advance to Super Regionals. Mazey says the sole focus when setting his lineup and pitching rotation is on winning Game 1 against Indiana and not looking at potential future matchups.

“You try to win the first inning of the first game,” Mazey said. “To win the first inning of the first game, you try to get your leadoff guy on. If you are on the mound when it starts, you try to get the first guy out. We have gotten where we have gotten because we focus on processes and not results.”

While JJ Wetherholt has shined as the Big 12 Conference Player of the Year, his double play partner, shortstop Tevin Tucker has elevated his game in his fifth season at WVU. Tucker started all 60 games on WVU’s last NCAA Tournament team. He has raised his batting average 138 points over the last year.

“I was just working hard and kind of trusting the process and just staying to it,” Tucker said. “Things really weren’t going my way early but if you just keep your head down and keep grinding, eventually they will go your way.”

“He has been around the longest and definitely has regional experience,” said Wetherholt. “He’ll be able to keep us calm and let us know what we are there to do.”

If WVU wins their regional opener against Indiana on Friday night, a possible matchup with the host team, Kentucky awaits on Saturday. That’s a game Tucker would like to see.

“Growing up, I was a Louisville fan,” said Tucker. “I definitely didn’t like Lexington or Kentucky at all.”





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