OMAHA, Neb. — West Virginia and Troy are the only teams among eight in this year’s Men’s College World Series making their first appearance on the premier stage in college baseball.
Both have every reason to feel they belong and made that evident ahead of Friday’s 1 p.m. (CST) contest between the Mountaineers and Trojans, which will air on ESPN.
“It’s probably unusual that the growth is this linear, meaning regional, super, super, get defeated by the national champs [LSU in 2025] and then Omaha. And mix in two Big 12 titles in that,” WVU coach Steve Sabins said. “So it really has been more of this line, where I don’t think that’s always the case.
“I’m certainly fired up that it has been the case for the Mountaineers, but it’s not surprising. We’ve mixed in first-rounders, incredible staff members and auxiliary staff members, and when you have an administration that basically refuses to put a ceiling on what this program can be, great things can happen.”
West Virginia and fellow MCWS qualifier North Carolina are the only two programs to have played in a Super Regional series each of the last three seasons.
The Mountaineers (45-15) broke through for a bid in Omaha, and after consecutive nail-biting victories against Kentucky allowed the hosts to win the Morgantown Regional, WVU was dominant in a best-of-three Super Regional series against Cal Poly. The Mountaineers defeated the Mustangs, 12-2 and 17-1, becoming the third time in college baseball history to win both games of a Super Regional series by 10-plus runs.
Sabins’ squad is 17-3 since the start of May.
“They have a real identity and, of course, they have pitched really well,” Troy coach Skylar Meade said. “They assault the strike zone, and I think all their pitchers, for the most part, they understand how they get you, and they stay in character often.
“So I credit Coach Sabins and his staff. They’ve earned this. Not that it’s a competition of, like, who earned it more. But I feel like both our programs have been pushing in this way.”
Troy (38-30) has won six straight since losing to Miami in its opening game of the Gainesville Regional. The Trojans have 69 runs during the ongoing streak and have scored at least five runs in all seven contests between the Gainesville Regional and a Super Regional series sweep against Little Rock.
The Sun Belt Conference member has made the most of an opportunity in the postseason since learning it was one of the last four teams chosen for the NCAA Tournament. With a 32-29 record entering the Gainesville Regional, Troy had the second-most losses of any at-large team in the Super Regional era, which began in 1999.
The first team to qualify for the MCWS with 30 losses, Troy’s regular season schedule ranked among the toughest of any team in college baseball and included a split with MCWS qualifiers Georgia and Alabama among a 2-4 record against Southeastern Conference teams as the Trojans lost single matchups with Mississippi State and Vanderbilt.
“The tough schedule definitely prepared us, and it did well for us, because we know that we’re capable in those high-pressure situations,” said junior catcher Jabe Boroff, who has six of his 11 home runs this season over the last five games. “And it proved to be good for us in the postseason.”
Consider that in the previous two years, the Trojans were not selected for postseason play with records of 37-22 and 39-21.
“I feel it’s very validating,” Meade said. “I know many times as someone who, I guess, maybe people deem outspoken, I don’t think I’m outspoken, I try to speak facts as much as possible. If I have something that’s not a fact, I want someone to tell me, certainly.
“But programs like us and many others that maybe don’t get an opportunity, we have awesome players. We can get here. I’m not saying we’re going to win a National Championship. It’s going to be really tough. It’s going to be really tough to win on Friday. But we can. We’ve proven that against the best of the best. We’ve earned this right to be here. And there are other programs such as ours that could do the same thing. Maybe they do. Maybe they don’t.”
Meade noted both he and Sabins agreed to confirm starting pitchers for Friday’s contest.
WVU is set to stick with right-hander Chansen Cole, who has been critical to the team’s success throughout 2026 and pitcherd well in the Morgantown Regional opener against Binghmaton as well as Game 1 of the Super Regional against Cal Poly.
A transfer from Division II Newberry College, Cole allowed three runs on 12 hits over 13 innings across starts against the Bearcats and Mustangs. He also worked 1.2 scoreless innings in relief on two days rest against Kentucky.
In his first season at WVU, Cole is 10-1 with a 2.85 earned-run average over a team-high 94.2 innings. The Mountaineers have a 17-2 record in 19 games Cole has pitched in.
“There’s a fine line between soaking it in and getting ready to win a tournament,” Cole said. “So it’s been fun and we’re extremely grateful and blessed to be here.”
Cole has credited boringness for helping him to remain even-keeled during the most important outings of his career and hopes to again shine at Charles Schwab Field.
“It’s just doing everything I’ve done up to this point, trusting everybody behind me defensively and trusting the coaching staff and just competing when I’m out there,” Cole said. “That’s all this game is. You’re going to compete between the lines and understand what makes you good and go out there and execute.”
Troy counters with its own Division II transfer in left-handed junior Benjamin Stubbs. Stubbs spent three seasons at Flagler College and enters the matchup against the Mountaineers 6-3 with a 4.93 ERA over a team-high 91.1 innings.
Like Cole, Stubbs has started twice in NCAA Tournament play with one relief appearance on short rest. Over the three outings, he’s pitched 12. Innings and scattered six runs on 13 hits with 11 strikeouts and two base-on-balls.
“Aggressive hitters, really good arms, a roster that’s been constructed with experience,” Sabins said of Troy. “Veteran players that have experience, and a team that’s really hungry and won’t back down for anybody in any situation. So they’ll certainly come out swinging. And we’re excited to face those guys.”