Troy Falls to West Virginia in Back-and-Forth College World Series Opener

Friday, June 12

Omaha, Neb.

1 p.m

Troy University

38-31

West Virginia

46-15

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Troy	0	1	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	5	9	2
West Virginia	1	2	1	1	0	0	0	2	X	7	9	0

Troy Falls to West Virginia in Back-and-Forth College World Series Opener

6/12/2026 6:02:00 PM | Baseball

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By: Troy Athletics Communications

OMAHA, Neb. - Troy dropped its College World Series opener to West Virginia 7-5 at Charles Schwab Field on Friday.

Trojan reliever Zach Crotchfelt and WVU reliever Ian Korn went toe-to-toe after both starters were knocked out early. Korn went six innings while issuing just one hit, a game-tying solo homer by Jimmy Janicki in the seventh inning. Crotchfelt had held the Mountaineers scoreless after taking over with two outs in the fourth before three singles scored two runs in the eighth.

For Troy, starter Benjamin Stubbs went 3.2 innings, allowing five runs and four earned runs on five hits and two walks while striking out four.

Stubbs struck out the side in the first inning; however, WVU managed to score a run before recording a hit. Leadoff hitter Armani Guzman reached second base on a ground ball error to second base and took third on the throw to first on a dropped third strike before stealing home.

The Mountaineers added a pair in the second on a two-run double by Tyrus Hall before Sean Smith hit a solo shot in the fourth.

The Troy offense was just as strong early, knocking out West Virginia Chansen Cole with two outs in the third. Troy scored four runs on seven hits against the sophomore righty, putting up one in the second before a three-spot in the third.

Sean Darnell doubled and scored on a single by Jabe Boroff with two outs in the second. In the third, Blake Cavill singled and Janicki doubled to put two runners in scoring position with one out before a Steven Meier sac fly, a Drew Nelson single and another double from Darnell

In the ninth, Troy managed to get the tying run on base with a two-out walk by Cavill. WVU turned to Ben McDougal for the final out, and the lefty got Janicki to pop out in foul territory to end the ballgame.

Notables

Troy moves to 3-1 all-time against Big 12 opponents and 0-1 against West Virginia.
Troy moves to 6-2 in the NCAA Tournament this season, 19-19 all-time, and 7-4 under Skylar Meade.
Jimmy Janicki's double in the third inning was his 25th of the season, which is tied for the fifth-most in Troy history.
Janicki's solo homer in the seventh inning was his 20th homer and 86th RBI of the season. On the play, he became the first player in Troy history with a 20-double, 20-homer season while surpassing Brooks Bryan (85 - 2024) for Troy's single-season RBI record.
Janicki's 86th RBI tied Georgia's Daniel Jackson for the second-most nationally.
Sean Darnell had two doubles in a game for the first time since March 8, 2025 at USC Upstate.
With two earned runs in 4.1 innings, Zach Crotchfelt now has a 1.33 ERA (earned runs) across six appearances and 20.1 innings in the postseason (Sun Belt Tournament/NCAA Tournament).
Jabe Boroff's RBI gives him 19 RBIs in the NCAA Tournament, the most since Wake Forest's Danny Corona had 19 in 2023. No player has had 20 since Adley Rutschman in 2018.