West Virginia baseball continued their now eight-game winning streak with a victory over Houston late Friday night. It has improved the Mountaineers to 28-4 overall (8-3 in the Big 12) so far this season.

Griffin Kirn came out red-hot on the mound. He finished with six innings pitched, five strikeouts, and only two runs allowed on the day. More importantly, he improved to 4-0 on the season as the ace for the Mountaineers. The transfer has proved so far this year that he can play on the Power 4 level.

WVU got the scoring started in the top of the second inning as Chase Swain drove in Brodie Kresser with an RBI single to make it 1-0 Mountaineers.

Chase Swain continued his great freshman season with a triple in the fourth inning, driving in another run for WVU. With two outs and no one on base in that fourth inning, it felt as though the Cougars were going to escape with only one run allowed. Then, a double by Grant Hussey lighted a flame into the Mountaineer’s batters. After a fielding error, a few walks, and a Jace Rinehart two-run single, the Mountaineers found themselves up 5-0.

Houston was able to get on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning thanks to a Kenneth Jimenez double up the middle. The Cougars were still down 5-1 heading into the fifth inning.

Swain added to his three-RBI day with a flyout in the top of the fifth, making the score 6-1 WVU. Cade Climie then homered for Houston in the bottom of the same inning to cut the lead to four.

The Mountaineers added to their 6-2 lead in the sixth inning with an RBI single by Kyle West. Then, later in the eighth inning, two more RBI singles by Logan Sauve and Gavin Kelly gave WVU the 9-2 victory.

It was an all-around effort for West Virginia today, much like it has been the entire season. The team continues to hit the ball extremely well, and the bullpen continues to perform at a high level. It is looking as though they will be competing for a home regional game at the end of the season.

The Mountaineers will face Houston in the second game of the series on Saturday, Apr. 11, at 7:30 p.m. ET.