HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Fifty-three weeks after falling one win short of claiming the first-ever Class AAAA state baseball championship, Morgantown will get a chance to play for the second against another Mountain State Athletic Conference opponent. The No. 2 Mohigans knocked off defending state champion Hurricane, 7-0 in the second Class AAAA semifinal.
Morgantown (31-5) will face George Washington (31-5) Saturday at approximately 8 p.m. in the 28th and final game of the WVSSAC state tournament.
MHS scored at least one run in four of their first five innings. Ryan Nipper, Kai Henkins and Brayden Gorby each drove in runs in the first two innings to build a 3-0 lead. Lincoln Thornton and Luca Mezzanotte followed with RBIs in the third as the Mohigans extended their lead to 5-0.
“The guys really had some line drive, middle-of-the-field approaches right there,” said Morgantown head coach Pat Sherald. “I am really proud of their effort. We had some guys that had some really good two-strike at bats as well. When I go back and look at it, those two-strike at bats made a big difference in this game.”
Mezzanotte and Henkins each added second RBIs in the fifth inning.
WVU signee Slade Barton allowed just two hits in four innings of work for Morgantown. He walked one batter and struck out three. Grayson Campbell pitched two innings in relief while Brayden Gorby picked up the final three outs.
George Washington defeated Morgantown, 4-3 in their lone regular season meeting on April 10 in the Mon County Classic at Kendrick Family Ballpark. MHS has not allowed a run in the state tournament, GW has yielded just one.
“We’re going to have to go and do what we did today. We’re going to have to play all three phases of the game. We hit, play defense and get a good pitching performance. That’s what we were able to do today.
“That’s a really, really good program at George Washington. Coming down here and having to face Cabell Midland and Hurricane, those are two really good programs I respect those coaches and their programs too.
“I know we had a little bit of an extended time between our last game and here and I told them, ‘I have really enjoyed being around you guys. We’ll get to spend a little extra time together’. Great, great group of kids. Great senior leadership. It is just a fun, fun group to be around.”
Tyler Baxter, Braylan Hutchison and Judson Witt each had base hits for Hurricane (26-10).
MetroNews broadcast interview from Luke Wiggs with Morgantown head coach Pat Sherald following MHS’ 7-0 win over Hurricane in the Class AAAA semifinals: #wvprepbase @MetroNewsSports pic.twitter.com/T1u79bHd0V
— Joe Brocato (@joebrowvm) June 13, 2026