MORGANTOWN — West Virginia’s 11th consecutive win was a steal.
Literally.
Chase Swain’s steal of home in the top of the ninth inning Tuesday night was the difference, as the 20th-ranked Mountaineers survived an upset bid from Marshall, 5-4, at Jack Cook Field in Huntington.
Swain, a native of Mannington, led off the inning with a walk and was sacrificed over by Grant Hussey. He advanced to third on a wild pitch.
With two outs, the game tied 4-4, and WVU down to its final strike in the inning, WVU head coach Steve Sabins rolled the dice. As Marshall reliever Tim Baird prepared to pitch to WVU’s Gavin Kelly, Swain took off for home. The steal was so unexpected that Baird was unable to step off the mound and make a throw to the plate, as Swain slid in for the go-ahead run. Baird then struck out Kelly to end the inning.
WVU reliever Carson Estridge struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to preserve the Mountaineers’ 19th road win this season. WVU (31-4, 10-3 Big 12) is 19-1 in road games this season, the best mark in the country.
Marshall fell to 18-19 on the season. The two in-state schools will play once more this season, at 6 p.m. on April 30, at Charleston’s GoMart Ballpark.
Swain was on base three times and scored three runs, while Hussey had two RBIs. Kelly and Brodie Kresser each drove in a run.
On the mound, the two final pitchers of the night, freshman Mac Stiffler and Estridge, were stellar with Stiffler tossing 2 1/3 scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts, while Estridge earned the win by throwing the final 1 2/3 innings. He did not allow a hit and struck out three.
The Mountaineers took the lead in the second inning on a two-run double from Hussey. Marshall answered in the home half of the second with two runs of their own and took a 4-2 lead in the fifth after Joel Gardner’s RBI double.
In the seventh, West Virginia rallied with two runs, as Kresser and Kelly each delivered with RBI singles.
Marshall threatened in the eighth, loading the bases with two outs, but Estridge induced a groundout to keep the game tied.
The Mountaineers return to Big 12 play at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, when they host Cincinnati (21-15, 8-7) inside Kendrick Family Ballpark. The three-game series will begin with WVU starting Griffin Kirn on the mound.
