Jack Bennett put together a clutch performance on the mound against West Virginia

After taking an early 6-0 lead against West Virginia through the first two innings on Saturday, Kentucky’s pitching went through a rough patch. But Paducah’s own Jack Bennett would save the day for the Bat Cats in a huge 11-9 win at the Morgantown Regional.

The Mountaineers reeled off five straight runs in the third and fourth innings. Kentucky head coach Nick Mingione was then forced to pull Saturday starter Nate Harris, who finished with four strikeouts and five earned runs in his 3.2 innings. A trio of Kentucky pitchers took the mound in quick succession from there, allowing WVU to tack on another run in the process. None of them saw more than 20 pitches before Mingione went into his bullpen once again — this time for good.

Senior pitcher Jack Bennett was handed the ball in the sixth inning with UK leading 8-6. The McCracken County product shut down West Virginia’s newfound momentum. He pitched four innings, allowing two earned runs with three strikeouts while fending off the Mountaineers’ last-ditch comeback effort. His 60 total pitches set a new career-high.

Even after giving up a home run in the top of the sixth, Bennett remained relaxed, needing just eight total pitches to escape the inning. He received timely help from his teammates on offense, but whenever it looked like he might be in a jam, the WKU transfer worked his way out of it with precision.

“I’m a pretty calm guy,” Bennett, who picked up his third win of the season, said postgame. “I don’t really get too caught up in the moment, or try not to at least. But coming out of the bullpen, you gotta have a fire in your ass. Excuse my language, but that’s what you gotta do.”

There was even a point where Mingione left the dugout and approached Bennett. It felt like a pitching change could have been coming. But Bennett said he knew his head coach would leave him in. Mingione put his faith in the senior, and Kentucky was rewarded with a 2-0 start in the regional because of it.

“Jack Bennett might have been the easiest player we’ve ever recruited out of the portal,” Mingione said postgame. “His dream school — I missed and got it wrong the first time, but we got it right the second time. 

“This is the only school that he would have played for. This is his hometown school, his state school, and this guy loves Kentucky as much as anybody. So for him to have this moment, and to have that with the game on the line, just unbelievable, and he’s right. I believe him with all my heart, and he’s so easy to root for because of how much he cares.”

Bennett likely won’t be available to pitch on Sunday, but he helped put Kentucky in a great position to win the region. The Bat Cats are just one more victory away from making it back to the Super Regionals for the fourth time in program history. UK will face the winner of WVU-Wake Forest this afternoon at 5:00 p.m. ET with a chance to win the regional.

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