Wheeling, W. Va. - The 2023 Mountain East Conference (MEC) Baseball Tournament presented by YES! Chevrolet and YES! Ford kicked off Wednesday with the first two first round games. Because the Wheeling University Baseball team (28-20, 17-13) clinched the #2 seed in the MEC North Division, they get an extra day of rest before starting their MEC Tournament run on Thursday. They open things up with a matchup against the #2 seed from the MEC South in Concord, with first pitch scheduled for 11 AM. It is just the second time in program history that the Cardinals have made the MEC Tournament since they joined the conference back during the 2013 season.
The Cardinals clinched that #2 seed thanks to a big doubleheader sweep on the road against West Liberty last Friday, before their final doubleheader of the 2023 season was washed away on Sunday. In both of the games on Friday, the Cardinals found themselves playing from behind with the Hilltoppers scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the first in both of those games. In game one, it was back-to-back solo home runs in the top of the third quickly tied the game and the Cardinal's pitching staff took over from there. They threw up six straight zeros, and another solo shot would secure the Cardinal's victory. In game two, the Cardinals and Hilltoppers would go back and forth, but Wheeling put up a three-spot in the top of the seventh inning, that ended up being enough as they held on to win 7-5 and clinch that #2 seed in the North Division.
Leading the Cardinals on the day was senior infielder Jacob Murray, who drove in three runs and hit two home runs across the two games. He finished 2-6, with both hits being home runs, while scoring two runs and driving in three. Murray has been on a power surge for the Cardinals as of late, hitting five of his 10 home runs this season over his last ten games. His 10 home runs are tied with teammate Braden Killens for the new Wheeling Baseball single-season home run record and over those last 10 games, Murray is hitting .303 (10-33) with five home runs and 12 RBI. He enters the tournament with two milestone moments on the line as he can break the single season hit record with 19 hits and can become the first player in program history with 100 career RBI if he can drive in seven RBI in Charleston.
While the middle of the order has been picking their runners up, it has been Christian Boyles serving as the catalyst at the top of the Cardinal's lineup. He leads the Cardinals in both doubles (11) and runs scored (38) entering tournament play and has a hit in 12 of his last 13 games. During that stretch, he had a 10-game hitting streak and hit .369 (17-46) with four doubles, a home run, and four RBI. Behind him, Spencer Craig rounds out the top four hitters on the team, adding a .297 average with five home runs and 23 RBI. Of Craig's five home runs this season, three of them have come in the sixth inning or later as he has been a clutch batter in key situations.
The 2023 MEC Tournament will be the second tournament that Wheeling has played in since joining the conference back in 2013, and the third playoff appearance for the program since it began in 2006. The Cardinals are 1-4 in their five playoff appearances all-time and are looking for their first MEC Tournament win. Their last playoff win came on May 13th, 2011, when they beat Seton Hill 16-3 in the first round of the consolation bracket. Head Coach Ryan Lewicki and his team are taking things one game at a time as they look to make history and bring home the first MEC Championship for the program.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Mountain Lions are meeting for the 33rd time in program history and for the second time in postseason play. Concord leads both the all-time series (24-8) and the all-time playoff season (2-0) with Wheeling looking for their first postseason win against the Mountain Lions. Despite the numbers, Wheeling has come back strong over the last 10 games of the all-time matchup, with five of their eight wins coming during that stretch. Wheeling is averaging 4.31 runs per game in the series and will look to their offense to help get things going once again.
In the regular season, the two teams met back on April 1st in a doubleheader that Concord would win by scores of 5-4 and 6-2. In game one, Kody McCarley would fall one out shy of a complete game, allowing five earned runs over 5.2 innings on seven hits while walking four and striking out four while Jacob Murray had a three-hit effort with an RBI. Murray was back at it in game two, going 1-3 with an RBI while Aidan Willard drove in the other Cardinal's run on the day.
The Details
First pitch for Thursday's first round matchup is scheduled for 11 AM at GoMart Ballpark in Charleston, West Virginia. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
