Six o'clock today is high noon for these two Appalachian programs. Late game heroics by West Virginia led to this rubber match. Kentucky blew a three-run lead in the ninth inning, extending the Mountaineers season.
If recent history is any indication of future success, this third game is good news for West Virginia. Nick Mingione's Wildcats are 0-7 in elimination games this season. For the Wildcat faithful will have to believe the rule of averages will benefit them at some point. After dropping seven elimination games, no one would fault Kentucky if they just felt they were due.
2026 NCAA Baseball Championship 123456789RHE
| Kentucky (33-22) | 0 | | | | | | | | | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| West Virginia (42-15) | | | | | | | | | | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Kentucky vs West Virginia baseball box score: Live stats from NCAA Championship
Kentucky
BatterPOSABRHRBIBBSOAVGOBP
| 37 | Jayce Tharnish | CF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .357 | .418 |
| 6 | Tyler Bell | SS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .343 | .508 |
| 10 | Luke Lawrence | DH | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .343 | .449 |
| 23 | Hudson Brown | 1B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .327 | .466 |
| 9 | Ethan Hindle | 2B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .307 | .433 |
| 24 | Braxton Van Cleave | RF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .278 | .343 |
| 2 | Tyler Cerny | 3B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .176 | .340 |
| 34 | Carson Hansen | LF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .225 | .336 |
| 29 | Owen Jenkins | C | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .247 | .308 |
| Total | 1831 | 327 | 468 | 363 | 247 | 0 | | |
West Virginia
BatterPOSABRHRBIBBSOAVGOBP
| 5 | Armani Guzman | 1B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .302 | .405 |
| 2 | Gavin Kelly | C | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .379 | .480 |
| 6 | Paul Schoenfeld | CF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .345 | .442 |
| 11 | Sean Smith | DH | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .316 | .408 |
| | Matthew Graveline | LF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .284 | .361 |
| 17 | Matt Ineich | SS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .300 | .435 |
| 12 | Brodie Kresser | 2B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .284 | .380 |
| 24 | Ben Lumsden | RF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .254 | .392 |
| 8 | Tyrus Hall | 3B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .276 | .407 |
| Total | 1950 | 260 | 427 | 363 | 221 | 0 | |
How to watch: Kentucky vs West Virginia 2026 NCAA Baseball Championship Game
Date: Monday, June 1
Time: 6 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN2
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