No. 2 West Virginia is set to face No. 1 Clemson with a spot in the Regional Final up for grabs. First pitch is set for 6:00 p.m. from Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
The Mountaineers beat Kentucky 4-3, while the Tigers beat USC Upstate 7-3 on Friday as both teams advanced.
WVU vs. Kentucky Recap
The Mountaineers trailed 3-0 in the fourth before they scored two in the fifth and then tied the game in the sixth. It was then an Armani Guzman sacrifice fly in the ninth that helped lift WVU to the win.
WVU put together seven total hits, but also reached on two Kentucky errors. WVU had two errors themselves in the game, as Brodie Kresser accounted for both of them, but he scored the game-winning run.
West Virginia only allowed one earned run and allowed only one hit following the fourth inning. Griffin Kirn got the start for WVU, throwing 118 pitches across 7.1 innings pitched, striking out seven in the process.
The only other pitcher West Virginia used was Reese Bassinger, who threw 26 pitches on the day. Bassinger went the final 1.2 innings, allowing one hit, striking out another.
Clemson vs. USC Upstate Recap
Like West Virginia, Clemson also trailed throughout the early part of the game.
The Tigers trailed 2-0 in the fourth, but then scored three runs in the fifth. Cam Cannarella went 3-for-5 with 4 RBIs on the night, while the rest of the Tigers' lineup combined for just three total hits.
Clemson added four more runs in the eighth inning, on a single, a sacrifice bunt, and then a home run from Cannarella, his fourth of the season.
Clemson started Drew Titsworth on the mound, as he made it four innings on the night. They then used two relievers in Jacob McGovern and Lucas Mahlstedt. McGovern tossed 3.1 innings, while Mahlstedt threw 1.2 innings to close the game.
Pitching Probables
West Virginia is likely going with Jack Kartsonas, while Clemson is likely going with Aidan Knaak.
Kartsonas has been WVU's second-best starter this season, tossing 59.0 innings, striking out 69 in the process. He has a 2.90 ERA on the season, and the Mountaineers are 4-3 in games he has started this season.
WVU will have their entire bullpen at their disposal. They might be without Bassinger, but he's been able to pitch on little to no rest at times this season. The Mountaineers will have Chase Meyer, Ben McDougal, and Carson Estridge, among others, available.
Knaak led the ACC in strikeouts this season, while he has been Clemson's ace this year. Knaak has 84.1 innings pitched, who has 106 strikeouts and a 4.06 ERA on the season. At home, he has a 2.60 ERA, and Clemson went 13-2 in games he started this season, including going undefeated at home.
Clemson will likely be without McGovern and possibly be without Mahlstedt as they threw 46 and 30 pitches, respectively.
The Tigers still have Reed Garris and Joe Allen available. Garris has a 1.33 ERA on the season in 27 innings pitched and he hasn’t appeared in a game since May 9th as he was dealing with an injury. Allen has a 1.84 ERA in 29.1 innings pitched this season and has given up one run in his last 10 outings.
Players to Watch
For Clemson, Cannarella is the player to watch. He accounted for half of their offense on Friday, with two runs scored, three hits, and four runs batted in. Cannarella bats leadoff for the Tigers, and he's hitting .339 on the season.
For West Virginia, it's Kyle West. West went 1-for-3 against Kentucky, but he was the hottest Mountaineer batter entering the regional. West is 10-for-21 in his last six games with two home runs and three runs batted in.
Regional Update
The winner of this game heads to the Regional Final on Sunday night. The winner will just have to win once more before losing to the same team twice to advance to the Super Regionals.
The loser of the game faces the winner of USC Upstate vs. Kentucky. They would play on Sunday afternoon, with the winner facing the winner of the WVU vs. Clemson game on Sunday night.
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