Apr. 4—MORGANTOWN — In the first meeting of the season between crosstown rivals Morgantown and University on the baseball diamond, it took some late offense to tell the story of the game.
After scoring two runs in the bottom of the first inning, the Mohigans (5-3) didn't allow University (4-5) to plate a run until the top of the fifth inning, as the Hawks tied the game with a pair of scores.
But MHS responded in the bottom of the sixth with two more runs that would hold true for a 4-2 victory over the Hawks on a windy Thursday on Dale Miller Field at Mylan Park.
Quincy Joseph was the only player for MHS to earn multiple hits, and the same story was true for UHS, with Lucas Neer leading the way with a pair as well.
Maddox Boggs earned the win on the mound for MHS, going six innings with five hits and two runs allowed, to go with four strikeouts.
Judd Messerly earned an 11-pitch save to seal the deal.
"Huge credit to Maddox Boggs today out there on the mound ; he competed for us for six solid innings, " MHS head coach Pat Sherald said. "We're a young group. I look out there, and half of our lineup is either freshmen or sophomores. The future looks bright, but we also like where these guys are right now."
The game's first run came as Vincent Aloi hit a groundball to UHS starter Tommy Montague, who threw home to catch Mason Bowers running from third.
Bowers dodged the tag and plated the Mohigans' first run. Aloi took second base during the play and was brought home by Joseph with a double to left field, giving MHS an early 2-0 lead.
Both teams came up empty at the plate in the second, third, and fourth frames before the Hawks found life in the fifth.
Neer singled, and Montague drew a two-out walk, allowing Max Cash to come to the plate and rip a double down the left-field line that scored both runners and tied the game at two.
A scoreless sixth inning made for a dramatic finish in the seventh. Aloi and Joseph hit back-to-back singles to open the final inning. Eli Boggs hit a groundball to second base that was bobbled, allowing pinch runner Carsin Lawhun to score the go-ahead run for a 3-2 lead.
Montague struck the next batter out for the second out of the inning and looked to be heading to the dugout trailing by one until a flyball hit by Lincoln Thornton was lost in the wind in the infield and fell safely to the turf. Joseph touched home plate, adding the fourth and final run of the contest as Messerly slammed the door on the Hawks' hopes in the bottom of the seventh.
"We're a very athletic team that has to put all three phases of the game together, " Sherald said. "We lost three games last weekend that were all one-run games, and those experiences make us better. We are right there with the best of them, but we have to find a way: running the bases, playing defense, throwing strikes, and putting the ball in play at the plate. Winning isn't easy, but we are finding ways to win some games."
BOX SCORE Morgantown 4, University 2 UHS 000 002 0 — 2 6 1 MHS 200 002 X — 4 7 2 University (4-5) — Montague 2000 Cash 4012 McCune 3010 Grabo 3000 Br. Shuba 3010 Jenkins 3010 Quarrick 3000 Neer 3120 Ba. Shuba 3000 Morgantown (5-3) — Bowers 2100 Mazey 2010 Aloi 3111 Joseph 3121 Boggs 3011 Bredeson 3000 Thornton 3011 Campbell 3000 Nipper 2010 (W): Ma. Boggs 6.0ip 5h 2r 2bb 4k (L): Montague 6.0ip 7h 4r 1bb 5k (S): Messerly 1.0ip 1h 0r 0bb 1k
