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West Virginia head baseball coach Randy Mazey knows all too well what a program like Fordham is capable of.

During his playing days at Clemson from 1985-1988, the NCAA Regional format at that time consisted of eight six-team regionals with the winners of those eight regionals advancing to the College World Series.

In 1988, the Tigers, the No. 1 seed in the Northeast Regional which was played in New Britain, Connecticut, opened up with a 3-2 win over Fordham in a game that lasted 19 innings.

Although Clemson got the victory, the team used eight total pitchers against Fordham according to Mazey which would eventually contribute to the team’s elimination from the regional that used a double-elimination format.

Stanford, a team that had now-Hall of Fame pitcher Mike Mussina on the roster, wound up winning the regional and the College World Series that year.

“(It) really cost us an opportunity to win that regional,” Mazey said. “So I know what Fordham is capable of doing and I want to make sure that our guys aren’t looking ahead to who we might play second or who we’re matched up with in a Super Regional if we win. This regional is all about playing Fordham at this point.”

The Mountaineers (37-20), who are the No. 15 national seed and hosting an NCAA Regional for the first time since 1955, will see No. 2 seed Texas A&M, No. 3 seed Duke and No. 4 seed Fordham all play in Morgantown for the first time ever. The Aggies are also the first SEC baseball program to visit Morgantown.

This regional is also paired with the Nashville Regional which has the No. 2 national seed and regional No. 1 seed in Vanderbilt, two-seeded Indiana State, third-seeded McNeese and fourth-seeded Ohio State.

There are a number of teams between these two regionals teams that indeed could make a team begin to lose its focus on the present and place its eyes on future matchups. But the matchup against Fordham (38-22) Friday at 8 p.m. ET is one that shouldn't be taken lightly.

The Rams’ strengths lie in their baserunning and pitching. As a team, Fordham is first in the nation in stolen bases, averaging 2.95 per game (177 total on the year), and fourth in ERA at 3.08.

When it comes to baserunning, sophomore Jake MacKenzie leads the team with 43 stolen bases and sophomore right-handed pitcher Jake Stankiewicz, who’ll start against the Mountaineers Friday night, leads the team with an 8-3 record in 12 starts to go along with a 1.21 ERA and 102 strikeouts.

“As a coach, a team like this worries you to death,” Mazey said. They are leading the nation in stolen bases, and they have the conference pitcher of the year pitching against us. This is a super high-quality team. They are super well coached.

“They can give you a different look than what you got all season. We run a lot as a team. I think we stole 92-93 bases. We lead the Big 12 in that category, and these guys have stolen almost double of what we have.”

West Virginia will look to counter Fordham’s baserunning attack with senior catcher Ivan Gonzalez, who has thrown out 16 batters this season.

“I have all the faith in the world in Pudge (Gonzalez) back there that if we give him the chance to throw someone out, he’s one of the best catchers in all of college baseball,” Mazey said. “We take a lot of pride in controlling the running game, so I’m anxious for the challenge to play against a team that runs so much.”

Fordham enters regional on a hot streak

The Rams enter Friday winners of six straight, including a perfect 4-0 mark during last week’s Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament.

In fact, Fordham is the only team in the Morgantown Regional coming off a win.

Like West Virginia’s team in 2017, Fordham will be making its first regional appearance in 21 years. The Rams last trip came in 1998 and the Mountaineers accomplished the same feat two years ago, making the regionals for the first time since 1996.

“I’m sure they’ll be playing with confidence,” senior right fielder Darius Hill said. “It’s always fun playing in front of a big crowd, so I think we’re going to get their best ball and we’re going to have to bring our best ball in order to beat them.”

Snyder gets the ball Friday

Starting on the mound Friday night for West Virginia will be junior left-hander Nick Snyder.

Snyder served as the midweek starter for the Mountaineers during the regular season and made three appearances out of the bullpen.

The New Jersey native has an 8-1 record this season (second-most wins on the team behind Alek Manoah who’s 9-3 this year) and rebounded with a strong showing during the Big 12 title game against Oklahoma State in Oklahoma City after a shaky start against Kansas during the first round of the tournament.

Snyder pitched three scoreless innings against the Cowboys and wound up allowing just one hit and a walk to go along with seven strikeouts.

“He had been so good all year, you kind of feel like he hit a speed bump against Kansas down there in the conference tournament,” Mazey said. “It was super important for him to throw really good against Oklahoma State which he really did.”

Snyder has made a serious jump in production this season after making just seven appearances on the mound last year, reaching career-highs in just about every pitching category and nearly throwing a no-hitter against Marshall on April 30.

What was the biggest factor in helping Snyder improve?

According to Mazey, it was just letting him be Nick Snyder. This philosophy is something Mazey learned from his mentor in the late Bill Wilhelm, a Hall of Fame coach at Clemson.

That philosophy, according to Mazey, is to recruit great athletes, teach them how to play the game but not overcoach them and stifle their athleticism.

“He’s a special talent, he’s got a great arm,” Mazey said. “He’s got a great routine and he just has to be Nick and that’s what we allowed him to do.”

Morgantown Regional Schedule

FRIDAY (5/31):

Game 1: (2) Texas A&M vs. (3) Duke - 4 p.m. ET

Game 2: (1) West Virginia vs. (4) Fordham - 8 p.m. ET

SATURDAY (6/1):

Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser - 2 p.m. ET

Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner - 7 p.m. ET

SUNDAY (6/2):

Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser - Noon ET

Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner - 6 p.m. ET

MONDAY (6/3)

Game 7: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner - 4 p.m. ET (if necessary)

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