WVU Baseball Team Chemistry: The Glue in Postseason Fight

A bonded team is a tough team. A gritty team. A type of team that will fight through adversity. The chemistry for the 2026 WVU baseball team has been the glue in its postseason fight and regular season success.

After needing to win three to advance to the NCAA Super Regionals, and doing just that, head coach Steve Sabins told the media that you could not draw it up any better than that.

“It was cinema. It had literally everything that you could imagine,” Sabins said. “If you keep going and you can get through adversity and you can stick together, you can do incredible things.”

Sitting next to coach and also grinning ear to ear during the press conference after advancing to the Super Regionals were Gavin Kelly, tournament MVP; Armani Guzman, who hit in the game winning run in the 10th inning; and Max Yehl, who started the game for the Mountaineers Monday night. Sabins said the goal is always to get to spend more time with his guys.

“It was just truly a beautiful week of baseball, and getting to spend more time with these kids is always the goal,” he explained. “You’re trying to stay alive to spend another day with these guys.”

With the college academic season over three weeks ago, the players have gotten to spend more time together this offseason while solely focusing on baseball.

“It is a lot of fun, these guys are my best friends for life,” Kelly said. “Being able to come to the field and play the game that we all love is awesome. And in an environment like this, in a regional where in my opinion you are not going to get a better three game series between two teams. It is really fun, it is really fun.”

Coach Sabins interjected with a laugh that Guzman finally told him that he loved him the other day.

“…so now that is out there. It happened in the moment dude,” Sabins joked with Guzman. “You can’t take that back anymore.”

When asked about their part in this series of games, the players focused a lot on the team and not as their role as individuals. Being named the MVP of the tournament, Kelly said it was a team effort and a team MVP award.

“… It’s a team MVP. It is unreal the stuff that everyone on this team did from Montessa to Korn to Yehl, to Lumsden to Armani …” Kelly said while joking with his fellow teammates and friends. “Everyone on the team deserves that. We have a team full of MVPs.”

Guzman shouted out to the pitching staff, who he said does not always get the recognition that they deserve.

“What they did this weekend was truly special,” he said. “Guys were throwing twice a week and Dawson Montessa threw 130 pitches last night and he came out throwing 97 (tonight). Pitching staff shout out to you guys man.”

Sabins said he is happy to get to do this all over again with this team this weekend with Cal Poly coming to town for the first-ever Super Regional in Morgantown.

“… These guys are really special. Some of these kids in this program has been a part of so many special moments,” the head coach explained. “Last year, that Clemson regional was epic and that was about as funs as it gets. Then this week was more fun and more exciting to be able to do it in front of our home fans.”

“We talk about electrifying the state and doing something bigger than yourself. We talk about this stuff all the time, but you felt that energy. I am pretty sure everybody in the entire state was tuned into this thing, like how can you not be, so just growing with the kids and start building the life-long relationships with them.”

Find more coverage of the WVU baseball program at WV Sports Now.