GRANVILLE, W.Va. - The West Virginia Black Bears rallied late to beat the State College Spikes in sudden death at Kendrick Family Ballpark on Thursday evening. The Bears mounted a rally in the seventh and ninth innings to tie the game at three and force the extra inning of play. After stealing third in sudden death, Alex Ungar walked it off on an errant throw to complete the Bears’ second sweep in as many series.
Pitcher Jacob Weaver took the mound for the Black Bears in his fourth start. Though he allowed two hits in the first inning, he retired the side in order in the second to keep the game scoreless.
State College struck first in the top of the third as an Adonis Forte RBI groundout scored Adam Paniagua. With two outs on the board, a two-run homer by Cole Caruso put the Spikes up by three.
Despite getting base hits, the Bears struggled to advance runners, stranding 12 on base and going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. But after being shut out through the first six innings, the Black Bears cut the Spikes' lead to one in the bottom of the seventh. Jordan Peyton sparked the offense with a one-out single before Drew Collins grounded into a force out at second base but beat the throw. Judah Morris followed with a single that put runners on the corners, and the walk of Alex Ungar loaded the bases. A two-run RBI single from Jace Rinehart broke the game open for the Bears, scoring Collins and Morris to make it 3-2.
Reliever Wes Burton shut down the Spikes in the ninth after a scoreless eighth inning for both teams. Still looking to end the series with a sweep, the Bears rallied in the bottom of the inning. Collins’s line-drive triple put the tying run within 90 feet of home. As Morris struck out, the pitch got by Spikes catcher Jaden Collura, giving Collins time to make it home.
Opting for offense, Alex Ungar was sent to first in the top of the sudden death inning. Ungar stole second, and the Spikes followed with the walk of Jake Berg. On his steal of third, an errant throw by the pitcher overshot the third baseman, allowing Ungar to walk it off for the Bears for the second time in three games.
The undisputed star of the Thursday night’s lineup was West Virginia’s own Jace Rinehart. The former Mountaineer went five-for-five at the plate with two RBI and a stolen base. Though Jacob Weaver allowed eight hits, he held the Spikes to three runs, punching out four in his seven-inning start. Spencer Hill and Wes Burton both recorded two strikeouts in one inning of work.
With the win, the Bears (20-6) extend their streak to seven games and increase their lead at the top of the MLB Draft League standings to 6.5 games ahead of Williamsport. The Black Bears return to Kendrick Family Ballpark on Friday for the first game of the three-game series against the Trenton Thunder and the first of back-to-back fireworks nights. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
