WVU sets sights on big picture after heartbreaking loss
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MORGANTOWN, W. Va. - West Virginia head coach Randy Mazey was at a loss for words.
A season that had seen the Mountaineers take the program to new heights by hosting an NCAA Regional for the first time since 1955, came to an abrupt end Sunday against Texas A&M by a score of 11-10 at Monongalia County Ballpark.
“What If I’m speechless? It’s hard to make an opening statement when you’re speechless,” Mazey said to open his postgame press conference.
Sunday’s elimination contest between the two teams in the Morgantown Regional was nothing short of a classic, but it was the Mountaineers that found themselves on the wrong side of it after surrendering a 9-1 lead.
A throwing error and five hits, including a grand slam, led to the Aggies making it a two-run game in the seventh inning and after the Mountaineers added an insurance run in the eighth, Bryce Blaum delivered a heartbreaking end to West Virginia’s season with a two-out, walk-off grand slam off junior right-hander Sam Kessler.
“Our kids, they threw their heart on the field. I’ll never fault anybody in that locker room for anything that’s happened,” Mazey said. “When bad stuff happens to you, that’s when you find out who you are and what you’re made of. I know everybody in that locker room, and I know exactly how they feel, and I know exactly how they’re going to handle it.”
West Virginia’s agonizing loss to Texas A&M is the type of heartbreaking defeat that has a way of becoming the one thing people may remember about the 2019 season, but Mazey is instead looking at what the program has accomplished over time.
“All I can do is treat this like a win,” Mazey said. “Big picture, I think this is a win. You can’t let one game, one pitch or one inning overshadow what our program has accomplished and how far we’ve come and what we’ve done.
“I’m not going to do that. I’m not going to let one inning of baseball or one game dictate my feeling about West Virginia baseball, because I couldn’t be prouder of anybody in that locker room.”
Amongst those in the locker room were four seniors that played critical roles in helping build the program up during their time in Morgantown in catcher Ivan Gonzalez, right fielder Darius Hill, infielder Andrew Zitel and left-handed pitcher Zach Reid.
This was a class that was recruited prior to when construction on Monongalia County Ballpark was finished and their recruitments centered around an idea to elevate the program and lay a new foundation for success.
And they did just that.
Two NCAA regionals, four Big 12 Tournament semifinals and two Big 12 title game appearances were seen through the eyes of these four seniors during their time in the gold and blue.
They also played in front of three different record-breaking crowds this season alone at Monongalia County Ballpark.
“Despite all of the tough times and everything that may have gone wrong, I think the positives outweigh anything that ever went wrong for us,” Hill said. “It’s tough knowing that today’s the last day, but I think looking back in a couple of weeks from now, I think it’s something we’ll look back on with some happiness and not sadness.”
The team will also lose junior right-handed pitcher and ace Alek Manoah, who was drafted No. 11th overall by the Toronto Blue Jays in this year's Major League Baseball Draft and Sunday starter Kade Strowd, who has elected to sign with the Baltimore Orioles after being selected 348th overall in the 12th round by the organization.
It’s possible the Mountaineers may lose more players such as midweek starting pitcher Nick Snyder, closer Sam Kessler, catcher Chase Illig and center fielder Brandon White, who were all selected in this year's draft as well.
But one message lingers with the 2019 campaign coming to an end for West Virginia and that is the program is no longer an afterthought.
“This program will never be the same,” Hill said.
“We’re here to play. The guys that are coming in, the guys that are here are high-level players that can compete with anyone in the country, and I think we proved that over the past few weeks. Even though we didn’t win all the time, I think we’re in a place now that this program is really going to go to new heights.”
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