Preview: West Virginia at Texas Tech

LUBBOCK, Texas (Interstat) — The West Virginia Mountaineers will look to secure a key Big 12 series victory when they face the Texas Tech Red Raiders on Saturday afternoon at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.

First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. EDT under cloudy skies with a game-time temperature of 82 degrees.

The Mountaineers (22-7, 4-3 Big 12) edged the Red Raiders 8-6 in Friday night’s series opener, extending their strong start to the season. West Virginia has won eight of its last ten games, including a 12-2 run-rule victory over Marshall on Wednesday where reliever Ian Korn shined with three scoreless innings.

Korn, a key arm out of the bullpen, is a player to watch. Over his last four appearances, he has allowed just two earned runs in 14 2/3 innings, striking out 17.

Texas Tech (19-13, 3-7) aims to even the series and halt a stretch of inconsistent conference play. The Red Raiders are 3-7 in their last 10 games but are coming off a 10-5 midweek win at New Mexico. In that victory, reliever Kaysen Raineri threw four hitless innings, though he allowed two earned runs.

Raineri’s recent outings have been volatile, surrendering nine earned runs over his last 3 1/3 innings pitched prior to the New Mexico game. His performance could be pivotal for a Red Raiders pitching staff looking to contain a potent West Virginia lineup.

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

The series concludes Sunday.