Preview: West Virginia Mountaineers at Baylor Bears

WACO, Texas (Interstat) — The West Virginia Mountaineers look to build on their strong start to the season when they face the Baylor Bears in a Big 12 conference matchup Saturday at Baylor Ballpark.

First pitch is scheduled for the afternoon under clear skies with a forecast temperature of 75 degrees.

West Virginia (11-3) enters with momentum, having won eight of its last nine games, including a 10-3 victory over Maryland on Tuesday. The Mountaineers’ offense has been potent, scoring 10 or more runs in five games this season.

A key contributor has been center fielder Paul Schoenfeld. Over his last 10 games, Schoenfeld is batting .333 (12-for-36) with 10 RBIs, including a 3-for-5 performance with two RBIs against Maryland.

Baylor (10-6) has won four straight, most recently a 13-5 win over Sam Houston State on Tuesday. The Bears’ lineup is powered by right fielder Brady Janusek, who is 11-for-37 (.297) with three home runs and eight RBIs in his last 10 contests. He homered and drove in three runs in the win over Sam Houston.

The teams opened their three-game series Friday, with Baylor securing a victory.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a high-scoring affair, predicting a 7-6 win for West Virginia. The service’s ELO rating system gives the Mountaineers a 62.1% probability to win.

On the mound, West Virginia’s recent success has been bolstered by strong bullpen work. Relievers Carson Estridge and Ian Korn combined for five scoreless innings in the win over Maryland.

Baylor’s Luke McLeod provided two scoreless innings of relief in Tuesday’s victory.

The series concludes Sunday afternoon in Waco.