Wheeling, W. Va. - It was another week down south for the Wheeling University Baseball team (4-1, 0-0) as they traveled to Virginia State for a rain-shortened two-game series. It was a series dominated by starting pitching, and that pitching was honored with the release of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) Player of the Week awards, presented by The Healthplan. Cardinal starting pitcher Sebastian Khan was named the MEC's Pitcher of the Week, after putting together a gem to open the series.
Khan got the game one start for the Cardinals and put together a complete game gem to open the series. The senior right-handed pitcher threw 7.0 innings of work, allowing just two hits while walking one and striking out a career-best nine batters. It was the third career complete-game effort for the senior, who also set his career-high with nine strikeouts in the game. HE would not allow a hit until the bottom of the fourth inning, and allowed multiple base runners just once in the game. He did all of this while working with just a 1-0 lead for a majority of the night, with the offense not getting him the two insurance runs until the top of the sixth inning. It continued what has been a strong start for the senior, who has allowed just two earned runs over his first 11.0 innings of work.
His best stretch came during the first three innings, where he took the mound with a 1-0 lead and retired each of the first nine batters he faced. In the bottom of the first, he would get his career strikeout day started by setting down the side in order. The final of those three strikeouts was a strikeout looking, and he would follow that with another strikeout to start the bottom of the second. He allowed his first contact with one out in the second, inducing a groundout right in front of the plate. Soft contact would highlight the rest of the early going, with five of the next six batters grounding the ball to an infielder. Khan would give up the first hit with one out in the fourth, but that was quickly erased with a strikeout and a caught stealing to keep him at the minimum. In total, Khan would face just three batters over the minimum, rounding out a strong start.
With Khan earning the MEC Pitcher of the Week, the Wheeling University Athletic Department has now had 33 student-athletes earn Conference Player of the Week honors. He is the second Wheeling Baseball player to win honors, joining Edward Mateo who was last week's MEC Player of the Week. Mateo was one of three Cardinals honored last week, joining Men's Basketball Player Caleb Murray and Women's Basketball Player Kenzie Dalton in being honored.
Khan and the Wheeling University Baseball team returns to action on Saturday, February 21st, when they host Mansfield University at GoMart Ballpark with first pitch at 2 PM.
