Coastal Carolina Comes up Short in 4-3 Loss to Charleston
College of Charleston now leads 29-17 in the all-time series record between them and Coastal Carolina after winning 4-3 in a thriller in Conway on Tuesday night.
In the bottom of the first inning, the Chanticleers loaded the bases on a fielder’s choice by Blake Barthol, an infield single from Trace Mazon and a hit-by-pitch drawn by Rex Watson. However, Coastal failed to capitalize as Walker Mitchell and Colby Thorndyke went down on strikes in consecutive at-bats, stranding all three runners. The Chanticleers have struggled to convert with runners in scoring position early in the season.
Coastal struck first on a fly ball down the right-field line off the bat of the red-hot Dean Mihos, which dropped in for a hit. Jordan Taylor raced home from second, giving the Chanticleers the game’s first lead at 1–0.
The Chanticleers quickly turned to the bullpen, handing the ball to freshman right-hander Daniel Parker. Jackson Smallets’ outing came to an end after 2.0 innings, as he allowed just one hit, one walk and a hit batter while throwing 36 total pitches.
Cougars starter Carter Harrington struck out the side in the bottom half of the third inning, totaling seven strikeouts and one earned run through the first three innings.
Freshman Kaden Myers relieved Harrington in the bottom half of the fourth inning. Harrington’s day came to an end. Myers allowed five earned runs in 2.1 innings pitched in the opening series against Rutgers.
Colby Thorndyke ignited the rally in the bottom of the fourth, ripping a sharp ground ball through the right side for his second hit of the young season. He later came around to score when sophomore Domenico Tozzi recorded his first hit of the year, lining a double that was misplayed in right field by Cougars outfielder Nick Diaz. The RBI two-bagger pushed the Chanticleers’ lead to 2–0.
With two outs in the top of the fifth, Cougars center fielder Reece Holbrook doubled down the left-field line to spark the inning. Brent Gibbs followed with a routine pop-up to left, but the ball was dropped by Jordan Taylor, allowing Holbrook to score and trim the Chanticleers’ lead to 2–1.
Darin Horn was called upon out of the bullpen to relieve Parker. Horn turned in a standout performance in the season opener against Fairfield, allowing just two hits over 3.1 innings while striking out four to earn his first win of the year. Parker wrapped up his outing after 2.2 innings, surrendering three hits and striking out two before handing the ball over to Horn.
Horn’s day came to an end in the top half of the seventh, leaving two runners on base with one out. Freshman left-hander Colby Richardson comes in relief. Richardson had an electric collegiate debut in Game 2 of the opening series against Fairfield.
Richardson allowed a single to the first batter he faced, Holbrook, who notched his second base hit of the game as he hit Payton Frehner in to tie the game 2-2. However, the threat was short-lived as the Cougars grounded into back-to-back outs to Barthol at second, allowing the Chanticleers to escape the inning without further damage.
The Chanticleers threatened in the bottom of the seventh as Mazon roped a line drive to the opposite field, Watson followed with a bloop single and Thorndyke reached on an error to load the bases with two outs.
With Taylor at the plate, Kurt Rogers uncorked a wild pitch on the first offering, allowing Mazon to race home from third and put the Chanticleers back in front, 3–2. Taylor later struck out to end the inning, limiting the damage against Charleston.
In the top of the eighth, the Cougars set themselves up with a prime scoring opportunity. Ethan Plyler reached on a walk, Dylan Johnson reached on an error by Blake Barthol, and Braeden Smith lined a single into center field to load the bases with no outs. Chanticleer reliever Scott Doran came into the game, relieving Richardson in a tough spot.
Payton Frehner evened the score on a weak grounder to shortstop, allowing Ethan Plyler to score from third. Jackson Berini then delivered a sacrifice fly that brought home Dylan Johnson, giving the Cougars their first lead of the night at 4–3.
The Chanticleers could not get their bats going in the final stretch of the game, and Charleston has now won three straight against the Chants.
Coastal has struggled in the early season with runners in scoring position and striking out, leaving prime scoring opportunities unconverted.
Freshman Carter Harrington had a very impressive debut for the Cougars, allowing just three hits and striking out seven.
Mihos went 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI, while Mazon contributed two hits of his own. Doran delivered 2.0 scoreless innings in relief, striking out four. Richardson took the loss, while Rogers earned the win with 3.0 strong innings out of the bullpen.
About The Author
1 thought on “Coastal Carolina Comes up Short in 4-3 Loss to Charleston”