OMAHA, Neb. (Interstat) — Dawson Montesa pitched five and one-third innings of no-hit baseball, Gavin Kelly homered and drove in four runs, and West Virginia shut out Troy 12-0 on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, in a playoff game at Charles Schwab Field.

The Mountaineers, who improved to 47-16, pounded out 14 hits and used six pitchers to limit the Trojans to four hits. Troy fell to 39-32.

Montesa, the top star for West Virginia, struck out six over 5.1 innings, walking three. He was lifted after reaching 87 pitches. Reese Bassinger followed with two perfect innings, striking out five. Carson Estridge struck out two in the ninth, and Ben McDougal recorded two outs without allowing a hit. The only Troy baserunners against the West Virginia bullpen came on a walk and an error.

The game was scoreless through two innings as Troy starter Cooper Ellingworth matched Montesa. Ellingworth allowed four hits and two earned runs over three innings, striking out four.

West Virginia broke through in the third. Kelly singled with one out, moved to second on a groundout, and scored on a double to left field by Maddox Graveline. Two batters later, with the bases loaded, a wild pitch brought home Graveline for a 2-0 lead.

The pivotal moment came in the sixth inning. With two outs and runners at first and second after walks to Trey Hall and Armani Guzman, Kelly launched a three-run home run to left-center field, his fourth RBI of the game. The homer extended the lead to 5-0.

West Virginia added a run later in the inning on an RBI single by Parker Schoen after a wild pitch moved him to second. The Mountaineers led 6-0 after six.

Montesa’s no-hit bid ended when Troy’s Jake Janicki doubled down the right-field line leading off the fourth. Montesa stranded Janicki at third by striking out Dalton Nelson. Troy had another scoring opportunity in the fifth when Jake Boroff singled and advanced to second on a fielder’s choice, but Montesa got a groundout to end the inning.

Troy threatened again in the seventh. With one out, Hayden Markham doubled, and after a walk, a single loaded the bases. Bassinger entered and struck out Bryce Cavill, then got a flyout and another strikeout to end the inning.

West Virginia tacked on three more runs in the seventh. Mike Ineich singled, advanced on a passed ball, and scored on a single by Brendan Lumsden. In the ninth, the Mountaineers erupted for four runs. Graveline singled, Ineich singled, and a sacrifice fly by Brody Kresser made it 7-0. After a pinch-hit single by Zach Barjam, Guzman doubled down the right-field line driving in two runs. Kelly singled in another, and Schoen grounded out for the final RBI.

Troy’s bullpen struggled. David Alonso allowed one hit and one walk in one inning but struck out two. Matt Dill gave up three hits and two earned runs in one inning. Hayden Smith allowed two hits and two runs in 1.2 innings, and Nate Criswell gave up one hit in two-thirds of an inning.

The Trojans’ four hits came from Janicki, Boroff, Markham and Jake Pyne. Troy stranded seven runners and struck out 14 times.

West Virginia’s previous results included a 7-5 win over Troy on June 12 and a 2-5 loss to North Carolina on June 14. The Mountaineers had won 11 of their last 13 games entering the playoff. Troy had lost two of its last three, including a 12-8 win over Mississippi on June 14.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of West Virginia 8, Troy 7. Interstat’s ELO system had projected West Virginia with a 63.30 percent probability to win.