Coastal Kicks Off Tournament Play Against VCU

The Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina look to bounce back this weekend as they take on VCU and Illinois in the Baseball at the Beach Tournament after losing a 4-3 thriller to Charleston on Tuesday night.

Students are here 👌 pic.twitter.com/kcb5Yug0g6

— Coastal Carolina Athletics (@GoCCUsports) February 20, 2026

Coastal had a 2-0 advantage through four innings until left fielder Jordan Taylor dropped a routine pop fly off the bat of Brent Gibbs, allowing Reece Holbrook to score with two outs in the top of the fifth, cutting the deficit to 2-1.

Freshman pitchers Daniel Parker and Colby Richardson saw key innings, with Richardson giving up the go-ahead runs in the eighth. Offensively, Coastal struggled to capitalize with runners in scoring position, a trend that has continued early in the season.

Senior Dean Mihos and JUCO transfer Trace Mazon each went 2-for-5 in the loss and remain as Coastal’s top hitters. Mihos is batting .389 with 12 total bases, leading the team in extra-base hits through four games, while Mazon is hitting .375 and is tied for the team lead with four RBI’s.

Entering the weekend, Coastal ranks near the bottom nationally in fielding percentage (.947) and has already committed eight errors this season, a weakness the team will need to tighten up.

Pitching-wise, Coastal has looked good on the bump, ranking 10th in the country in strikeout-to-walk ratio with a total of 45 strikeouts to just eight walks through four games. Sophomore reliever Scott Doran leads the program in strikeouts with eight in two appearances this season.

Unfortunately, some bad news for Coastal’s War Room as ace Cameron Flukey will not pitch this weekend as he sustained a strained muscle between his ribs, per Head Coach Kevin Schnall. Flukey apparently suffered the injury during the preseason and reaggravated it in his season opener against Fairfield. Schnall said it is too early to tell how long he will be out, but is feeling better day-to-day, which is all that matters. Schnall stressed how valuable Flukey is to the club, and it would be inappropriate to rush him back.

Left-handed reliever Dominick Carbone will also miss the remainder of the season after undergoing successful surgery on his UCL on Wednesday. Carbone was named a preseason first-team All-American and recognized as one of college baseball’s top relievers.

Tough blow for the Chants as they lose out on a few of their most reliable players, still awaiting the returns of pitchers Ryan Lynch and Hayden Johnson.

As for VCU, they are coming off a historic opening series against Holy Cross last weekend. The Rams walked it off in the first game of the series on a sacrifice fly by junior Ethan Acevedo in his first plate appearance as a Ram, while Fenix DiGiacomo, Caleb Clover and Zach Peters combined for 17 strikeouts in a one-hit gem on the mound. VCU went on to score 35 total runs and strike out 40 batters across the weekend, earning the three-game sweep to begin the season for the first time since 2011.

Junior infielder Nate Fitzpatrick opened his 2026 campaign in dominant fashion, going 6-for-10 over three games against Holy Cross. His weekend was highlighted by a four-hit performance in the series finale and a two-run home run in Game 1 of the doubleheader. The Canadian native also drove in a team-high nine runs during the sweep.

Michael Petite has already recorded three extra-base hits this season, including a pair of home runs in Game 2 of the doubleheader, showcasing impressive power out of the leadoff spot.

Freshman outfielder Brendan Horne added three hits over the weekend, including a home run and a triple, while driving in four runs during the series.

Sophomore Luke Jones will make his second start of the season in Friday’s series opener for Coastal. Jones tossed 4.1 innings against Fairfield last weekend, allowing three hits and three walks while striking out seven. The South Carolina native will look to build on that strong outing and set the tone on Friday.