WVU Baseball Blasts Past Utah 6-3 With Homer Party

WVU Baseball picked up a 6-3 win over Utah on Friday, April 4, hitting four home runs on a foggy night at Kendrick Family Ballpark.

Kyle West, Jace Rinehart, Logan Sauve and Grant Hussey each cleared the fences for West Virginia (25-4, 5-3 Big 12), while Mountaineers starting pitcher Griffin Kirn notched a quality start, throwing 6.2 innings on 92 pitches and allowing three runs. Despite the low pitch count, Kirn managed to fan 14 Utah batters, hitting the 300 strikeout hurdle for his career.

Three of West Virginia’s home runs came with nobody on base, preventing the game from turning into an onslaught.

The Utes got the scoring started with a second inning solo shot of their own, then West and Rinehart punished back-to-back two-out pitches to put the Mountaineers in front 2-1. Sauve joined the party in the fifth, but Utah catcher Derek Smith caught Armani Guzman trying to steal third moments prior, wiping an extra run off the board for West Virginia.

Late Inning Drama

Utah’s first two batters reached in the seventh, but Mountaineers head coach Steve Sabins stuck with Kirn, leaving him in for two more outs. Kirn got the hook after a fly ball to left — albeit one shallow enough that the Utes couldn’t tag up — then Utah tied things up with a two-run single off Chase Meyer.

Grant Hussey drilled a two-run homer to the power alley in right-center to put West Virginia back on top, then Spencer Barnett baited an errant throw from Utah replacement catcher Jack Kleveno, giving himself a chance to race home from third.

Into the fog and 𝘸𝘢𝘢𝘢𝘢𝘢𝘢𝘺 over the wall!@Grant_Hussey616 pic.twitter.com/1bJGH7nPrB

— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) April 5, 2025

Meyer stayed in to finish the game and allowed just one baserunner after the seventh, a hit batter who he promptly erased with a double play.

Owing to inclement weather, the series between WVU Baseball and Utah will conclude as a doubleheader beginning on Saturday, April 5 at 1 p.m.