Senior day can be a special moment for an athlete and that certainly was the case for West Virginia State baseball standouts Josh Falbo and Trent Porter.
Falbo, a former Hurricane standout, did not allow a hit through six innings in leading State to a 8-2 victory over rival University of Charleston on Sunday afternoon in the first game of a doubleheader at Cal Bailey Field in Institute.
Porter hit a pair of two-run home runs as the Yellow Jackets completed the sweep with a 9-2 win in the second game.
With the wins, State improves to 29-13 overall and 24-8 in the Mountain East Conference. The Yellow Jackets are the South Division champions and will start play in the Mountain East Conference tournament on Thursday at Epling Stadium in Beckley.
"Those guys have won a lot of ball games and been involved in a lot of big games," State coach Sean Loyd said. "They know how to act and when the moment gets big how to make pitches or have big at-bats. It's a good group of kids that we are going to miss."
State was three outs away from the no-hitter in the first game when UC's Jeff Somuk broke it up in the seventh inning on a bunt single to lead off the frame against Yellow Jackets senior relief pitcher Curtis Johnson.
Falbo pitched six innings, allowing one earned run, striking out seven and walking five.
"I would have liked to have seen us throw the no-hitter but the most important thing is how the team did," said Loyd, who was ejected for arguing balls and strikes in the third inning.
"He has had a transition being a short reliever to a starter. The mentality is a lot different but he has responded well and improved throughout the year."
Falbo was proud of his effort against the rival Golden Eagles.
"I was glad to send the seniors out on a game like this," Falbo said. "I felt great the whole time I was out there. I didn't even pay attention to it. When I came back from the sixth inning, they told me I had a no hitter. I told them I wasn't worried about it.
"They wanted to send me back out but I wanted to be selfless. I wanted to get the seniors in. I wanted Curt [Johnson] to get the opportunity just as much as I did being a senior. I wanted to get the no-hitter but that's baseball. There is nothing you can do about it.
UC scored a run in the top of the second inning to take a 1-0 lead on a walk, steal of second, another walk, wild pitch and a RBI groundout by Taylor Itnyre.
State, though, would plate a run to tie it at 1-1 in the bottom half on a RBI double by Josh Kiser. The Yellow Jackets plated three runs in the third inning and four more in the sixth to break the game wide open.
In the second game, Porter hit his first two-run homer in the fourth inning to give State a 4-0 lead and followed it up with another two-run shot in the fifth inning to give the Yellow Jackets a commanding 7-0 lead.
"It is a great feeling going out this way," Porter said. "It's been a good four years. It was good timing today. I was seeing the ball and got some good swings on them. The first one I knew it was gone."
"It is always nice when your big dog is swinging the bat well," Loyd said. "He gets pitched tougher because he has had a good reputation, had an excellent career and people know who he is."
UC finishes its season 16-33 overall and 10-22 in the MEC. First-year coach Andrew Wright sees a bright future for his Golden Eagles.
"Obviously the wins and losses weren't what we wanted it to be but we really feel like we are laying a foundation for success in the future," Wright said. "There are things that are happening to take hold to move this program ahead in a hurry."