Box Score March 6, 2010
Box Score
CONWAY, S.C. - The eighth-ranked Coastal Carolina University baseball team (9-1) scored seven runs in the first three innings and held off a late Pittsburgh (7-2) rally to defeat the Panthers 9-6 March 6 in the Caravelle Resort Invitational in Conway, S.C.
For the second straight day, the Chants used the longball in the bottom of the first. Senior Jose Iglesias belted a two-run shot to left, scoring junior Rico Noel and giving Coastal a 2-0 lead. Two batters later, sophomore Daniel Bowman hit a solo shot to make it 3-0 Chants. Then in the second, redshirt-senior Chance Gilmore singled, went to second on a wild pitch, moved to third on a single from freshman Josh Conway and scored on a Noel single. Conway moved to third on the Noel single and scored on a wild pitch by Kevin Dooley.
Pittsburgh would threaten in the third as Cory Brownsten and Zach Duggan led off the inning with singles. Junior Cody Wheeler would get out of the jam unscathed as he got Danny Lopez to ground out and John Schultz to line into a double play.
In the third inning, Bowman doubled to lead off the frame, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt from senior Adam Rice and scored on a Gilmore double, making it 6-0 Coastal. The Chants loaded the bases as Conway walked and Noel was hit by the pitch, with junior Scott Woodward driving in Gilmore on a bases-loaded walk, making it 7-0 Chants.
The score would remain 7-0 until the top of the seventh. Brownsten walked with one out and moved to third on a Duggan double. Lopez brought both runners home on a single to right center. Lopez would score on a run-scoring single by Sean Toole to make it 7-3 Chants. Coastal would come back in the bottom of the seventh as Iglesias belted his second home run of the day, a two-run shot that scored Woodward and gave Coastal a 9-3 lead.
In the top of the ninth, sophomore Brad Goldberg struck out Duggan to open the inning, but he gave up singles to Lopez and Schultz. Joe Leonard reached on an error that scored Lopez. Toole then doubled down the right field line to make it 9-6. That brought in redshirt-senior Austin Fleet. Fleet got Kevan Smith and Travis Whitmore to ground out to end the game and earn his fourth save of season.
Wheeler moved to 3-0 on the year as he gave up three runs and seven hits with four strikeouts in 6.1 innings. The loss was tagged to Dooley, who gave up seven earned runs and seven hits in 2.2 innings of work.
Iglesias drove in four runs with his two home runs, while Bowman and Gilmore had two hits apiece. For Pittsburgh, Toole was 3-for-5 with three RBIs.
Coastal Carolina continues the Caravelle Resort Invitational Sunday, March 7 against Ball State. First pitch is at 2 p.m, at BB&T Coastal Field in Myrtle Beach.
