Final Two Games of “The Battle for Wheeling” Washed Away as MEC Tournament Looms

Wheeling, W. Va. – It was a wet and dreary day on Sunday as showers and storms moved through Wheeling, West Virginia. The Wheeling University Baseball team (28-20, 17-13) still honored their seniors in a ceremony inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center, but the rain washed away the final two games of the four-game weekend set. Because the Cardinals have already clinched the #2 seed in the MEC North and West Liberty has already clinched the #3 seed in the MEC North, the games will not be made up.

With the cancelation, the Cardinals sweep their edition of “The Battle for Wheeling,” taking the first two games of the series on Friday. In both games, the Hilltoppers built an early lead with two first inning runs, and both times the Cardinals battled back. In game one, it was thanks to dominant pitching that put up six straight zeros to hold West Liberty at bay. Kody McCarley threw two of those six innings and Kenny Jinks threw the final four to set the single-season record with his eighth win of the season. The Cardinals added three solo home runs from Christian Boyles, Spencer Craig, and Jacob Murray to seal the win. In game two, the comeback came a little later as Wheeling fell behind 5-4 in the sixth, but scored three in the top of the seventh to win 7-5

The official seeding and first round matchups will be announced on Sunday night or early Monday by the conference, but the Cardinals are locked into the #2 seed in the North. They will open their tournament play on day two of action in the first game of the day at 11 AM. The tournament is a double elimination bracket and Wheeling will play at least through Friday afternoon. They look to continue what has already been a historic season for the team, as they have already broke the single-season win record. Head Coach Ryan Lewicki also enters the tournament with a milestone at hand, sitting just two wins away for 100 for his career. He would be the second coach in program history to reach the mark, sitting behind former Head Coach Terry Edwards who went 167-347 over 12 seasons.