GRANVILLE, W.Va. – The West Virginia Black Bears defeated the Trenton Thunder 5-3 at Kendrick Family Ballpark on Tuesday evening. The Black Bears took an early lead – one the Thunder almost erased in the fifth – powering through to win their third straight game.
Starting pitcher Parker Dillhoff made his Black Bears debut with two scoreless innings. The left-handed pitcher from Lebanon, Ohio, retired the side in order in the first and allowed a double from Danny Corona in the second. After walking catcher Ervin Sullivan, the Bears secured the third out on a pop fly to Ben Zeigler-Namoa.
West Virginia took a two-run lead in the bottom of the first. Shortstop Tyler Cerny’s lead-off double and the walk of Tyler Pettorini puts Bears on the bags. A double steal by Cerny and Pettorini advanced both runners into scoring position before a wild throw from Sullivan bounced into the outfield, allowing Cerny time to round the base and score. Sam Miller slapped a double to left field, scoring Pettorini to go up 2-0.
The next inning, Ben Lumsden got an RBI on a sacrifice fly caught by left fielder Brayden Fraasman as Ethan Hott tagged from third base for a three-run lead.
After two quiet frames, the Trenton offense showed signs of life in the third as Aaron Whitley stole home to get the Thunder on the board. Two innings later, shortstop Michael Whooley cut the Bears’ lead to one with a sac-fly that scored Rowan Masse. The next at-bat, Fraasman plated Whitley to tie the game.
The Black Bears finally reclaimed the lead for good in the seventh inning as Pettorini singled to bring home Cerny. Nico Newhan added some padding with a groundout RBI to score Pettorini to charge ahead 5-3.
Reliever Gavin Braunecker, who took the mound in the fifth, kept the Bears on top with a clean frame in the eighth, leaving the save for newcomer Connor Benge. Though two Thunder players made it on base on walks, Benge sealed the deal with a strikeout to make it three straight for the Bears.
Leading the offense for West Virginia, the two Tylers were responsible for three of six team hits and four of the five runs scored. Adding to his league-leading total hits (33), Tyler Pettorini went one-for-two with two runs, an RBI and a game-high four stolen bases. Tyler Cerny smashed two doubles in three at-bats, scoring two runs and adding two steals.
The Bears’ bullpen, full of new faces, held the Thunder to seven scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts. Reliever Solomon Washington struck out six in his 2.2 innings pitched, while Gavin Braunecker got the win in his first appearance. Fresh off a College World Series win with the LSU Tigers, Connor Benge (S, 1) punched out two to end his first Black Bears game.
With the win, West Virginia is now tied with the State College Spikes atop the league standings with four games remaining in the first half. The Black Bears return for the second of three games against the Thunder on Wednesday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
