{"id":28073,"date":"2026-06-05T06:53:37","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T06:53:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=28073"},"modified":"2026-06-05T06:53:37","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T06:53:37","slug":"for-one-glorious-moment-3500-people-sounded-like-an-entire-state-after-a-dramatic-walk-off-victory-sent-west-virginia-to-the-super-regionals-something-even-more-powerful-happened","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=28073","title":{"rendered":"\u201cFOR ONE GLORIOUS MOMENT, 3,500 PEOPLE SOUNDED LIKE AN ENTIRE STATE.\u201d After a dramatic walk-off victory sent West Virginia to the Super Regionals, something even more powerful happened. As the celebration erupted, players, coaches, students, and 3,500 fans stood shoulder to shoulder and sang \u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d with a passion that shook the stadium. For a few unforgettable minutes, it wasn\u2019t about baseball anymore. It was about pride. Tradition. Home. A team fighting for history. A community united by one song. The game-winning hit may have sealed the victory \u2014 but the thunderous chorus that followed is the moment fans say they\u2019ll remember forever."},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"post-header\">\n<h1 class=\"entry-title\">Unforgettable: WVU Fans\u2019 \u2018Country Roads\u2019 Anthem After Dramatic Walk-Off Win<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"featured-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image perfmatters-lazy entered pmloaded\" src=\"https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads.png 1600w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-300x157.png 300w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-1200x629.png 1200w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-768x402.png 768w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-400x210.png 400w\" alt=\"WVU baseball team leads fans in &quot;Take Me Home, Country Roads&quot; sing along\" width=\"1600\" height=\"838\" data-src=\"https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads.png\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads.png 1600w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-300x157.png 300w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-1200x629.png 1200w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-768x402.png 768w, https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/wvu-country-roads-400x210.png 400w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" \/><\/div>\n<div class=\"caption\">WVU baseball team leads fans in \u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d sing along (Photo Credit: 11point7 College Baseball \/ X)<\/div>\n<p><strong>West Virginia University provided one of the most \u201cincredible moments\u201d in baseball:\u00a0<\/strong>the singing of \u201cTake Me Home,\u00a0Country Roads.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Mountaineers baseball team from West Virginia University is trying to earn their first-ever appearance in the College World Series\u2026and they just might do it.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday (June 1), they played University of Kentucky in the Morgantown Regional Round of the NCAA Baseball Championship Tournament. Having already eliminated Binghamton and Wake Forest, it was down to Kentucky and West Virginia, who had played in Game 4 of the series with Kentucky besting the Mountaineers 11-9.<\/p>\n<div class=\"vNGdDtoN\"><\/div>\n<p>West Virginia didn\u2019t go down without a fight. They came back in Game 6 on May 31 to beat the Wildcats 11-9, forcing a Game 7 for a winner-take-all situation.<\/p>\n<p>After a nail-biting game, WVU\u2019s Armani Guzman hit a walk off single in the 10th inning to send Brodie Kresser home to score the winning run.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" class=\"\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=CountryRebel&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=2061622390631645326&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fcountryrebel.com%2Fwvu-fans-country-roads-anthem-after-walk-off-win%2F&amp;sessionId=f17d2b81b02509a516f888eeefcb273bc96eac71&amp;siteScreenName=CountryRebel&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"2061622390631645326\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-origwidth=\"\" data-origheight=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>For the third straight year, they advance to the Super Regionals. They play against Cal Poly Pomona, and then hopefully, the College World Series in Omaha. The school has never made it past Super Regionals.<\/p>\n<div class=\"CzKnk50m\"><\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-167396 perfmatters-lazy entered pmloaded\" src=\"https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-3.png\" alt=\"Omaha will once again be the home of the College World Series \" width=\"187\" height=\"200\" data-src=\"https:\/\/countryrebel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-3.png\" data-ll-status=\"loaded\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Omaha will once again be the home of the College World Series (Photo Credit: NCAA)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"the-celebration-included-their-trademark-take-me-home-country-roads-sing-along\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Celebration Included Their Trademark \u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d Sing Along<\/h2>\n<p>As Kressler touched home plate, the announcer yelled,\u00a0<strong><em>\u201cCue \u2018Country Roads,\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>knowing that the song would be blaring through the stadium speakers at any moment to celebrate the victory.<\/p>\n<p>Jensen Lewis, who announces college\u00a0baseball\u00a0on ESPN, posted the powerful moment on X and wrote,\u00a0<em>\u201cI\u2019ve been part of some incredible moments in my baseball life.. Being in the booth for this one tonight ranks with the best ever.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>See his post below and watch the WVU Mountaineers baseball team lead their stadium of 3,500 in the singing of the 1971 John Denver classic.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-1\" class=\"\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=CountryRebel&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-1&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=2061643080890007893&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fcountryrebel.com%2Fwvu-fans-country-roads-anthem-after-walk-off-win%2F&amp;sessionId=f17d2b81b02509a516f888eeefcb273bc96eac71&amp;siteScreenName=CountryRebel&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"2061643080890007893\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-origwidth=\"\" data-origheight=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>About a minute into the sing along, hero Guzman had the headset on to speak with the broadcast booth, but he was taking it all in and even singing into the microphone as well.<\/p>\n<p>He later gave a shoutout to his mom, who was filming him from the first row above the dugout.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"instagram-embed-0\" class=\"instagram-media instagram-media-rendered\" src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DZEM-aZxVbM\/embed\/captioned\/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=540&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fcountryrebel.com&amp;rp=%2Fwvu-fans-country-roads-anthem-after-walk-off-win%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A598.5999999998603%2C%22ls%22%3A146.5%2C%22le%22%3A202.69999999995343%7D\" height=\"986\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-instgrm-payload-id=\"instagram-media-payload-0\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-origwidth=\"\" data-origheight=\"986\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>What a moment for the Mountaineers, and what a moment for all fans to witness!<\/strong>\u00a0They host Super Regionals, so there might be more \u201cCountry Roads\u201d moments beginning on June 5.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"take-me-home-country-roads-has-a-long-history-at-wvu\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d Has A Long History AT WVU<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d has been intertwined with the identity of West Virginia University almost since the song\u2019s release in 1971. Written by John Denver along with Bill Danoff and Taffy Nivert, the song quickly resonated with West Virginians because of its references to the state\u2019s mountains, rivers, and sense of home.<\/p>\n<p>Recognizing its emotional connection to the state, WVU adopted the song as part of its football traditions just a year later.<\/p>\n<p>A landmark moment occurred on September 6, 1980, when John Denver himself performed \u201cCountry Roads\u201d before a sold-out crowd during the dedication of the new Mountaineer Field. Thousands of fans sang along, cementing the song\u2019s status as the unofficial anthem of WVU athletics. The performance remains one of the most celebrated moments in school history and helped deepen the emotional bond between the university and the song.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"perfmatters-lazy-video\" data-provider=\"youtube\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YTbgJZsm17A\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YTbgJZsm17A\" data-query=\"feature=oembed\" data-referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\">\n<div class=\"play\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"John Denver at Mountaineer Field\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YTbgJZsm17A\" width=\"350\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-origwidth=\"350\" data-origheight=\"235\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>While the song had long been part of pregame festivities, the tradition most associated with WVU today\u2014fans singing it together after victories\u2014developed later.<\/p>\n<p>According to\u00a0accounts from WVU athletics, then-head coach Rich Rodriguez encouraged the team and crowd to remain in the stadium after wins during the early 2000s and sing the song together. The practice quickly caught on, turning postgame celebrations into a communal ritual where players, coaches, students, and fans sway arm-in-arm and sing about returning home to West Virginia.<\/p>\n<p>To further the song\u2019s connection to the state, \u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d became an official state anthem for West Virginia in 2014.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Unforgettable: WVU Fans\u2019 \u2018Country Roads\u2019 Anthem After Dramatic Walk-Off Win WVU baseball team leads fans in \u201cTake Me Home, Country Roads\u201d sing along (Photo Credit: 11point7 College&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28074,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28073","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28073"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28073\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28075,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28073\/revisions\/28075"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28073"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28073"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28073"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}