MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Interstat) — Dawson Montesa delivered a commanding start to rebound from recent struggles and Gavin Kelly provided a decisive sixth-inning blast as West Virginia held off a late rally by BYU for a 7-4 victory in a Big 12 conference opener Thursday.

The Mountaineers, improving to 14-4 overall, overcame an early four-run deficit with a relentless second inning and relied on their bullpen to secure the win after BYU’s Easton Jones launched two home runs. The Cougars fell to .500 at 10-10.

The most critical sequence of the game unfolded in the bottom of the sixth inning, breaking a 4-4 tie and ultimately providing the winning margin. With one out and a runner on first, West Virginia’s Sam Ineich singled through the left side. BYU left fielder Painter mishandled the ball, allowing Hall to score all the way from first and Ineich to advance to second. On the very next pitch, Kelly hammered a two-run homer to left field, stretching the lead to 7-4 and capitalizing fully on the defensive mistake.

That offensive burst made a winner of Montesa, West Virginia’s starting pitcher. The right-hander turned in his best performance of the month, working seven strong innings while allowing three hits and two earned runs. He struck out seven and walked none, a stark contrast to his two previous outings where he surrendered eight earned runs over seven combined innings.

BYU had seized early control without a hit, scoring four times in the first inning on a combination of walks, hit batters, and productive outs. The Cougars managed only five hits total, with three belonging to Jones. The third baseman’s solo homer in the seventh and a two-run shot in the ninth accounted for three of BYU’s four runs. Catcher Ridge Erickson added a solo home run in the fifth.

After Garrison Sumner struggled with control for BYU, allowing four earned runs in four innings, the Cougar bullpen provided scoreless relief. Nate Wochner was particularly effective, striking out three in 1 2/3 hitless innings. Dan Brousseau and Brock Snow also contributed scoreless outings.

West Virginia’s relief corps, however, sealed the game. Bryson Thacker struck out two in a perfect eighth inning. After Jones’s ninth-inning homer brought BYU within three and put the tying run at the plate, David Perez entered and struck out two batters to end the game and earn the save.

The victory followed the projection of Interstat’s game simulator, which predicted a 7-5 West Virginia win. The Mountaineers’ ELO probability to win was set at 74.40%.

The teams continue their three-game series Friday.