WVU Falls Short in Backyard Brawl Opener - West Virginia University Athletics - WVU Athletics

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The West Virginia University baseball team fell at Pitt, 9-6, on Wednesday night at Charles L. Cost Field.

The Mountaineers fell behind early but rallied to tie the game before the Panthers took the lead back for good in the middle innings. WVU finished with nine hits in the loss, scoring two runs in the third inning and four in the fourth.

Brady Devereux earned the win out of the bullpen for Pitt, while freshman right-handed pitcher Chris Sleeper took the loss.

"When you score six runs and get nine or 10 hits, you should win the game," WVU coach Randy Mazey said. "But we walked 10 guys. If you don't throw strikes, then you can't pitch, no matter how old you are. If you don't throw the ball over the plate, then you aren't going to win."

West Virginia (14-9) loaded the bases in the top of the first inning but couldn't strike for an early run. An inning-ending double play spoiled the visitor's scoring threat, before sophomore right-hander Ben Abernathy took the mound for his first career start.

Moments later, Pitt (13-10) struck for six runs in the bottom of the first – all of them with two outs – to take a 6-0 lead. It stayed that way until the third when freshman infielder Grant Hussey got the Mountaineers on the board with an RBI single. WVU added another run in the inning to cut the deficit to 6-2.

Then, WVU tied the game at 6 with four runs in the top of the fourth. First, freshman infielder JJ Wetherholt smacked an RBI single through the right side, which led to a towering, three-run homer by junior outfielder Victor Scott II.

The big fly marked Scott's fifth of the year.

However, the Panthers retook the lead in the bottom of the fourth and added to it with a two-run homer in the sixth to make it 9-6.

Trailing once again, West Virginia left a pair of runners on base in the eighth and went in order in the ninth to end the game.

A trio of Mountaineers finished with multiple hits in the setback. Senior outfielder Austin Davis went 2-for-5, while Wetherholt went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Sophomore outfielder Braden Barry also tallied a pair of hits.

On the mound, WVU used eight pitchers on Wednesday. Following Abernathy's exit in the first, Sleeper allowed just one hit with four strikeouts in 3.0 innings, while sophomore right-hander Carlson Reed got an inning-ending strikeout with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth to keep the game within reach.

Wednesday's game marked the first of three Backyard Brawl matchups between the Mountaineers and Panthers this season. The two squads are set to meet on April 19, at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, as well as May 10, at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark in Morgantown.

Next up, the Mountaineers begin Big 12 Conference play with a three-game series at No. 10 TCU from April 1-3, in Fort Worth, Texas. First pitch of Friday's series opener is set for 7 p.m. ET.

For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

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