HUNTINGTON — The WVSSAC Class AAAA and AAA state championships are set for Saturday.
In Friday’s WVSSAC baseball semifinals, Ripley moved closer to a repeat, while St. Albans is seeking its first title since 2017 in Class AAA.
Morgantown will face top-seeded George Washington in Saturday night’s AAAA final. The Mohigans defeated Hurricane 7-0 late Friday night, while the Patriots’ Eli Smith put on a pitching clinic in a 4-0 win over Jefferson.
Here are the top performances from Friday’s action:
Player of the day
Eli Smith, George Washington
George Washington’s ace delivered the biggest pitching performance of the day when the stakes were highest.
Smith fired a complete-game two-hit shutout as the Patriots defeated Jefferson 4-0 to advance to the first state championship game in program history. The right-hander struck out eight and walked two while never allowing Jefferson to advance a runner beyond second base.
With a championship berth on the line, Smith dominated from start to finish and authored one of the best performances of the state tournament.
Top performances
Luke Gordon, George Washington: The Patriots center fielder finished 2 for 3 with a double, triple, two RBIs and a walk in a 4-0 semifinal victory over Jefferson.
Landon Meadows, Ripley: Meadows allowed one run on six hits over six innings as Ripley defeated Bridgeport 5-1. He also doubled and drove in a run.
Bryson Casto, Ripley: Casto doubled, tripled, scored two runs and drove in a run before recording the final three outs on the mound.
Slade Barton, Morgantown: Barton earned the win after tossing four scoreless innings, allowing three hits while striking out five in Morgantown’s 7-0 victory over Hurricane.
Kai Henkins, Morgantown: Henkins finished 2 for 4 with a double and two RBIs as the Mohigans advanced to the Class AAAA championship game.
John Cummings, Ripley: Cummings went 3 for 3 and scored a run in Ripley’s Class AAA semifinal victory over Bridgeport.
Chance Campbell, St. Albans: Campbell went 3 for 3 with two RBIs in a 3-2 victory over Shady Spring that sent the Red Dragons to the state championship game.
Brayden Gorby, Morgantown: The Mohigans leadoff hitter went 2 for 2, scored twice, drove in a run, walked twice and stole a base in the 7-0 win over Hurricane.
Braxton Burke, St. Albans: Burke allowed two runs over six innings and helped send the Red Dragons to their first championship game since 2017.
Lincoln Thornton, Morgantown: Thornton went 3 for 3 with an RBI and a walk as Morgantown pounded out 10 hits in the Class AAAA semifinal.