West Virginia coach Randy Mazey fretted over his shorthanded pitching staff facing an Oklahoma lineup that scored 30 runs in its previous two games.
“It worried the heck out of me but old Conner Dotson nullified that in a hurry,” Mazey said.
His sophomore right-hander tossed 6 1/3 innings and threw a career-high 117 pitches during an 11-1, seven-inning rout that eliminated the Sooners and sent West Virginia into the championship game of the Big 12 tournament in Oklahoma City.
One more win Sunday—against the survivor of TCU or Texas—and the Mountaineers will be headed back to an NCAA regional for the first time since 1996.