VESTAL, N.Y. - Binghamton baseball (31-20) has arrived in Morgantown, W.Va. and will work out at Kendrick Family Ballpark Thursday ahead of its Friday night NCAA Regional opener against host and national No. 16 seed West Virginia (39-14). 

The Bearcats and Mountaineers will square off at 5 p.m. on ESPN+, following the noon game between No. 2 seed Wake Forest and No. 3-seed Kentucky. The double-elimination regional will continue with two games on Saturday, two on Sunday and an "if necessary" game on Monday. 

Binghamton is making its seventh appearance in the NCAAs. The Bearcats have advanced to the NCAA Regionals two straight years and three times in the last five years. 

The Bearcats went 3-0 to capture the America East tournament on their home field last weekend. Championship Most Outstanding Player Matt Bolton had five hits and a key 2-run home run in the 7-3 title-game win over Maine. Joining Bolton on the All-Championship team were junior ace Conner Griffin (1-0, 0.00 ERA), sophomore first baseman Steven Kraus (.455) and sophomore third baseman Tim Hennig (2-run double in title game).  

West Virginia, ranked ninth in the latest national poll (D1Baseball), is making its fourth straight NCAA Regional appearance and 17th overall. It's the third time the Mountaineers are hosting a regional. The team earned an at-large bid after finishing runnerup in the Big 12 with a 21-9 record. The Mountaineers fell to Kansas, also selected as a host, in the Big 12 Tournament title game. 

After seeing explosive offensive opponents in its last two NCAA openers (Stanford, Georgia), the Bearcats will have to contend with an elite West Virginia pitching staff that boasts the nation's ninth-best ERA (3.82). The staff allows less than eight hits per game (8th in NCAA) and has posted 10 shutouts this spring. Starting pitcher Chansen Cole ranks fourth in the Big 12 with a 3.04 ERA. The sophomore was a first team All-Big 12 selection. Not to be dismissed, the Mountaineers' offense ranked third in the Big 12 with .312 team batting average. Ten players were named all-conference. West Virginia went 16-6 at home this season and lost two games in a row just twice during the entire season.  

Pitching Matchup
RHP Conner Griffin (3-3, 4.87 ERA) vs. RHP Chansen Cole (8-1, 3.04 ERA) | Live Video | Live Stats