— By Bill Cornwell
Marshall baseball coach Greg Beals is hoping home field advantage can lead to success for the Herd in what’s sure to be a challenging week.
Beals’ team welcomes a pair of nationally-ranked opponents for a total of four contests, starting with a 6 p.m. Tuesday matchup against 20th-ranked West Virginia that can be seen on ESPN+.
Late this week, No. 16 Coastal Carolina comes to Huntington for a three-game Sun Belt Conference series starting Friday.
WVU won two of three meetings with Marshall last season, with one win for each program coming by one run in the matchups.
The state’s two Division I programs are also scheduled for three games this season and will face each other in Morgantown on April 7, along with a neutral-site game at Charleston’s GoMart BallPark on May 5.
Marshall (13-9, 5-1) dropped its first Sun Belt game this season Sunday at Georgia Southern, 18-12.
The Herd won the first two games against the Eagles to claim a series win one week after sweeping Georgia State in Huntington.
“Today wasn’t our day,” Beals said. “We have to pitch better than we did today in order to win — 15 free passes is way too many to win baseball games. All of their ground balls found holes today and when you combine that with free runners, it is a prescription for giving up runs. Offensively, I see our approach continue to grow which is encouraging. We will ride this bus home and get ready for WVU on Tuesday at The Jack.”
The Mountaineers (16-4, 5-1) come to Huntington Tuesday after a three-game sweep of BYU in a Big 12 Conference series from Thursday to Saturday. An 11-1 win in the series finale marked WVU’s fifth consecutive victory as the Mountaineers totaled 30 runs in three games against the Cougars.
West Virginia’s potent offense is being led by Gavin Kelly and Paul Schoenfeld, a duo that has combined for 67 hits, 27 of which have gone for extra bases, and 43 runs scored across 20 games.
Maxx Yehl, Dawson Montesa and Chansen Cole have led the pitching staff, though it’s highly unlikely any of the three will toe the rubber for the midweek matchup in Huntington.
Bryce Blevins, Drew Harlow and Kenyon Collins have guided the Marshall pitching staff, combining for a 9-3 record and 119 strikeouts thus far.
Marshall’s offense is led by its first two hitters in the lineup — Evan Buttone and Tyler Kamerer. Both have recorded 34 hits and Buttone has hit a team-high six home runs.
WVU’s David Hagen and Marshall’s Blaine Albright have enlisted probable starting pitchers for Tuesday.
The right-handed Hagen is 1-0 without allowing a run across 6.1 innings to go with seven strikeouts and two base-on-balls.
Albright, a southpaw, is 1-2 with a 14.09 ERA, six strikeouts and seven walks in 7.2 innings.
Marshall has won 10 of 13 since a 3-6 start to the season.