MORGANTOWN — Maxx Yehl needed another X in his first name Friday night. He was simply that filthy.
In what will likely go down as one of the top WVU pitching performances of the season, Yehl held down a potent Kansas lineup to the tune of just one run over a complete nine innings, as the 15th-ranked Mountaineers took Game 1 of the three-game showdown, 4-1, against the seventh-ranked Jayhawks.
Yehl threw 124 pitches inside Hoglund Ballpark in Lawrence, Kan. His final one was a fastball that registered at 93 that blew past Augusto Mungarrieta for Yehl’s ninth strikeout of the game.
His gem included just two walks. Of the six hits Yehl allowed, only one was for extra bases.
Indeed, after missing two weeks of the regular season recently with arm and shoulder soreness, Yehl (7-1) is back at the top of the game.
So, too, just may be the Mountaineers (33-12, 17-8 Big 12), who handed the Jayhawks their first home loss in Big 12 play this season. Along the way, WVU put at least a one-day hold on Kansas (37-13, 20-5) celebrating its first regular-season conference championship since 1949.
The only history being made on this night came screaming out of Yehl’s left hand.
He pitched out of a jam in the second inning, when Daniel Ballinger and Dariel Osoria both led off the inning with singles. Yehl then forced Tyson Owens to hit into a double play and Mungarrieta grounded out to end the inning.
The only run he allowed came in the sixth inning, after Ballinger lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to score teammate Jordan Bach. WVU still led, 3-1.
He allowed only two base runners over the final three innings, when his pitch count had gone well north of 80 pitches.
It all added up to WVU’s first victory against a top-seven ranked team since a 5-2 victory against No. 6 Oklahoma State in 2022.
It also kept the Mountaineers mathematically alive in the hunt for a second straight Big 12 championship. WVU is now three games back of the Jayhawks with five conference games remaining in the regular season.
Game 2 of the series is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday, with WVU going with Chansen Cole on the hill. Cole is coming off his own complete game in a victory last week against Kansas State.
As for the offense, WVU catcher Gavin Kelly hit his fourth home run over his last three games. This one was a solo shot in the third inning that sailed 394 feet and bounced off the light pole in center field to give WVU a 1-0 lead.
Sean Smith tripled to the deepest part of the park to lead off the fourth inning, as his blast ricocheted off the wall in center, just past the reach of a leaping Owens.
Armani Guzman, who finished 3 for 4 and also stole two bases, drove Smith in with a base hit, which was followed by another single by Brodie Kresser. With the runners on first and third, WVU pulled off a delayed double steal and Guzman beat the throw to home to give WVU a 3-0 lead.
WVU third baseman Tyrus Hall added another solo home run in the seventh inning, the team’s eighth home run over its last three games.
That was more than enough support for Yehl, who has allowed just one run over 14 innings over his first two starts on the mound since returning from injury. He has struck out 17 hitters in those 14 innings. His season ERA dropped to 2.04 following the victory.
