Friday, February 20
Lynchburg, Va.
4:00 PM
West Virginia University
at
Liberty
Mountaineers Hit the Road to Take on Liberty
February 19, 2026 03:34 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team heads to Liberty University to take on the Flames for three games from Feb. 20-22. First pitch on Friday is set for 4 p.m., Saturday for 2 p.m., and Sunday for 1 p.m.
Fans can watch all three games on ESPN+ and follow with live stats on wvusports.com.
The Mountaineers are 3-0 this season after opening with a sweep on the road at Georgia Southern. WVU won on opening day, 15-3, before sweeping a doubleheader by scores of 11-10 and 5-2.
West Virginia had big offensive weekends from a pair of transfers as senior Matthew Graveline hit two home runs and sophomore Matt Ineich hit .667 and reached base in 13 of his 16 plate appearances against the Eagles. Returners Gavin Kelly and Armani Guzman each had three doubles in the series.
On the mound, junior Dawson Montesa had the strongest start with seven strikeouts in 6.0 innings while allowing two runs. Graduate student Reese Bassinger tossed 3.2 scoreless innings in relief while senior Carson Estridge and freshman David Perez both collected saves.
Pitching Probables
RHP Chansen Cole (0-0, 6.75 ERA, 3 K, 2 BB, 2.2 IP) vs. RHP Ben Blair (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7 K, 0 BB, 6.0 IP)
RHP Dawson Montesa (1-0, 3.00 ERA, 7 K, 0 BB, 6.0 IP) vs. RHP Jaxon Lucas (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 3 K, 0 BB, 4.0 IP)
LHP Maxx Yehl (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 2 K, 1 BB, 2.0 IP) vs. RHP Bradely Zayac (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7 K, 0 BB, 4.0 IP)
Heading into the 2026 season, WVU was picked third in the Big 12 Coaches Poll, the highest predicted finish since joining the Big 12. Additionally, the Mountaineers clocked in at No. 21 in the Baseball America Top 25 and No. 27 in the NCBWA Preseason Top 30.
Led by 2nd year head coach Bradely LeCroy, Liberty was picked seventh out of 12 teams in the CUSA Preseason Poll. In 2025, the Flames went 30-27 and 10-17 in conference play.
Ben Blair was named the CUSA Preseason Pitcher of the Year. He struck out eight in 6.0 scoreless innings against The Citadel to open the season. Tanner Marsh joined Blair on the CUSA Preseason Team.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Fans can watch all three games on ESPN+ and follow with live stats on wvusports.com.
The Mountaineers are 3-0 this season after opening with a sweep on the road at Georgia Southern. WVU won on opening day, 15-3, before sweeping a doubleheader by scores of 11-10 and 5-2.
West Virginia had big offensive weekends from a pair of transfers as senior Matthew Graveline hit two home runs and sophomore Matt Ineich hit .667 and reached base in 13 of his 16 plate appearances against the Eagles. Returners Gavin Kelly and Armani Guzman each had three doubles in the series.
On the mound, junior Dawson Montesa had the strongest start with seven strikeouts in 6.0 innings while allowing two runs. Graduate student Reese Bassinger tossed 3.2 scoreless innings in relief while senior Carson Estridge and freshman David Perez both collected saves.
Pitching Probables
RHP Chansen Cole (0-0, 6.75 ERA, 3 K, 2 BB, 2.2 IP) vs. RHP Ben Blair (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7 K, 0 BB, 6.0 IP)
RHP Dawson Montesa (1-0, 3.00 ERA, 7 K, 0 BB, 6.0 IP) vs. RHP Jaxon Lucas (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 3 K, 0 BB, 4.0 IP)
LHP Maxx Yehl (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 2 K, 1 BB, 2.0 IP) vs. RHP Bradely Zayac (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7 K, 0 BB, 4.0 IP)
Heading into the 2026 season, WVU was picked third in the Big 12 Coaches Poll, the highest predicted finish since joining the Big 12. Additionally, the Mountaineers clocked in at No. 21 in the Baseball America Top 25 and No. 27 in the NCBWA Preseason Top 30.
Led by 2nd year head coach Bradely LeCroy, Liberty was picked seventh out of 12 teams in the CUSA Preseason Poll. In 2025, the Flames went 30-27 and 10-17 in conference play.
Ben Blair was named the CUSA Preseason Pitcher of the Year. He struck out eight in 6.0 scoreless innings against The Citadel to open the season. Tanner Marsh joined Blair on the CUSA Preseason Team.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
RHP
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RHP
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RHP
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OF/C
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UTL
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INF
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UTL
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RHP
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RHP
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Steve Sabins | Feb. 16
Monday, February 16
Matthew Graveline | Feb. 16
Monday, February 16
Reese Bassinger | Feb. 9
Monday, February 09
Brodie Kresser | Feb. 9
Monday, February 09
