WVU Baseball’s Season Ended Bitterly — But Omaha Feels Closer Than Ever

Originally posted on West Virginia Mountaineers on SI
By Schuyler Callihan | Last updated Jun 9, 2025 11:23 AM ET

A really strong start ended with a sluggish end in the regular season for West Virginia, but making it to the super regionals for the second consecutive year helped make up for it. However, it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows in the postseason either, as the program's all-time leader in home runs, Grant Hussey, took an unexpected backseat in tournament play, going out in disappointing fashion.

Although I wasn't a huge fan of the decision to bench Hussey for Ben Lumsden, head coach Steve Sabins had a year one that everyone would have signed up for. When Randy Mazey rode off into the sunset this time a year ago, there was a little uncertainty surrounding the program's future and whether they would be able to continue building it into one of the Big 12's premier teams.

It may be a small sample size, but I think it's safe to say WVU baseball is in great hands. Sabins led the Mountaineers to a 44-16 record, setting the program record for wins in a season. He also helped guide West Virginia to its first-ever outright Big 12 regular season title and swept through the Clemson regional.

The fact that Mountaineer fans are furious with some of the decision-making in the postseason and with the way the season has ended is a good thing. A decade and a half ago, hardly anyone paid attention to WVU baseball. Now, people have a deep passion for the team and have aspirations of making it to Omaha.

It hasn't been a lightning-in-a-bottle type of situation either. Both Mazey and Sabins have slowly built this program into one of the nation's best. They ended their 24-year NCAA Tournament drought in 2017, hosted a regional for the first time since 1955 in 2019, won a share of the Big 12 in 2024 while also winning a regional for the first time, leading to what they accomplished this season.

They've continued to check off one box at a time, so the next step for this program is to make it to Omaha. Considering how much success the team experienced in year one under Sabins, it's not far-fetched to believe they could make their College World Series debut as early as 2026. Recruits and transfers see the trajectory of the program and believe even brighter days are ahead in Morgantown.

Sure, it was a disappointing finish to the 2025 campaign, but just keep in mind where this program was 15+ years ago.