The West Virginia Mountaineers (46-15) opened the College World Series with a 7-5 win over the Troy Trojans (38-31) Friday afternoon.

West Virginia head coach Steve Sabins met with the media following the game and reflected on the program's first win at the College World Series.

Opening statement

"Really fun game. Exciting to be here. I thought the guys played great.

"I want to make sure I spend a little bit of time on just how well Troy played and how well coached they are and how competitive that team is and what (head coach) Skylar Meade has done with that program is nothing short of incredible. They deserve a ton of credit.

"I thought our guys came out fearless and aggressive and it started with (junior) Armani (Guzman) turning an error into a double, advancing to third on a throw across the diamond, and stealing home. It wasn't anything that's completely unusual to us, but it was just playing the way that we play. So, I was really proud of the guys just settling in.

"We saw (sophomore starting pitcher) Chansen Cole get hit a little bit for basically the first time all season. So, he'll bounce back and be great again. What (graduate) Ian Korn did in that game to stabilize it - to go six inning, two hits, was nothing short of miraculous. Then, obviously, (senior reliever Ben) McDougal got a big out there to close it.

"There were a lot of heroes throughout the game. The guys to my left certainly were among them, and Tyrus Hall played as good as anybody. He had the big double off the left-center field wall, followed it up with an incredible defensive play that ended up saving a run.

"I thought we played clean baseball. I thought the guys were grounded and were themselves, and I think that's all you're looking for this time of year."

Handing the ball to senior left-hander Ben McDougal in the ninth with two outs

"Dougal's had ice water in his veins, man. He's a killer, and he's one of the most quiet guys and most humble guys. He's from the state of West Virginia, and in every big moment that he's ever been put in, he's basically been himself or elevated his game.

"The four-hole for Troy smashes baseballs, and that's what he did in the at-bat before when he hit Korn for the homer to left-center. The ball was hit about 115 miles an hour. Matchup-wise, we just believed that a left-handed was better against (sophomore Jimmy) Janicki in that situation.

"Korn was kind of cruising, so we knew he was going to face the first three hitters, and if it got to Janicki, we were going to go to McDougall. But after he clips off two quick outs and then it's a walk, you're like, 'Damn, I wish we weren't in that spot,' right? Because the guy's throwing strikes and handling the moment.

"There's always that unknown when you bring somebody out of the bullpen in a big moment. It's just that with McDougall, he's so convicted and he's been in those moments so many times.

"At the end of the day, what I told myself is you're either playing to win or you're playing to lose, essentially. So you've got to play to win because it's the right matchup with the right kid. The extra-base numbers right-handed versus left-handed are completely different. He's been a different hitter this year against left-handed fastballs.

"We just had to rip the band-aid off and do that."

Singing 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' in Omaha

"It makes me really proud.

"I was thinking about it after Tyrus hit the double down the right-field line and we scored. I'm like, 'We might have a chance to sing 'Country Roads' here in front of the country.' Then I told myself 'to get those thoughts out of my head. That's poison. Don't go there. Stay in the moment.' All those kinds of thoughts.

"But that was my first thought because it is unifying, it is exciting, and our state loves it. And, it's about togetherness and all the stuff that we're into as coaches.

"I'm excited for the kids to stand on that line and look up and see thousands of fans - some Mountaineer fans and some not, and the ones that aren't, it's almost even cooler because they're like, 'I want to get in on this. I want to be part of this thing'

"For me, it meant everything, and we get to do it after every win. I think the nation is now getting to share in that, which is pretty special."