Preview: West Virginia Visits Texas Tech to Open Big 12 Series

LUBBOCK, Texas (Interstat) — The 15th-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers, boasting the Big 12’s best record, begin a crucial conference series on the road Friday against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.

First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CDT under cloudy skies with a temperature near 78 degrees.

West Virginia (22-7, 6-3 Big 12) enters riding high after a 12-2, eight-inning rout of Marshall on Wednesday. The Mountaineers have won seven of their last nine, including a road series sweep at Arizona State. Their offense is potent, averaging over eight runs per game during that stretch. Key contributors in the midweek win included Sean Smith (2-for-3, 2 RBIs) and Gavin Kelly (3-for-4, 2 RBIs).

A player to watch for the Mountaineers is reliever Ian Korn. The right-hander has been exceptional, not allowing an earned run in three of his last four outings, including three hitless innings against Marshall on March 24 and two scoreless frames against the Thundering Herd on Wednesday.

Texas Tech (19-13, 5-10) looks to stabilize after a inconsistent start to league play. The Red Raiders snapped a three-game skid with a 10-5 victory at New Mexico on Tuesday, powered by Kyeler Thompson (2-for-4, 2 RBIs). However, they have lost four of their last five Big 12 contests, including a series loss to Houston last weekend.

Red Raiders reliever Kaysen Raineri is a key figure. He tossed four hitless innings with four strikeouts at New Mexico, but has struggled with command in recent conference appearances, allowing nine earned runs over his last three Big 12 outings spanning just 3 1/3 innings.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a high-scoring affair, favoring West Virginia 7-6. Their ELO rating system gives the Mountaineers a 58.3% probability to win the series opener.

The series continues Saturday and Sunday in Lubbock.