March 7, 2013

Box Score

MYRTLE BEACH - Kiana Quolas and Kory Hayden kept their respective streaks going and the Coastal Carolina softball team opened up the Chanticleer Challenge with a 3-0 shutout of Georgetown Thursday afternoon at Carolina Forest High School.

Quolas pitched her third complete-game shutout in four games and increased her run of consecutive scoreless innings to 30. She has gone four straight starts without allowing a run.

Hayden, meanwhile, added a solo homer in the sixth inning to extend her hitting streak to eight games.

Coastal, which evened its record at 10-10, totaled just three hits in the game, but manufactured two runs in the bottom of the fourth to give Quolas the only support she needed.

The sophomore right-hander helped her own cause with a leadoff double to the left-field corner, her fifth double of the season. Hayden was then hit by a pitch and a sacrifice bunt by Cacia Pierre moved pinchrunner Nicole Saggiomo to third and Hayden to second. Saggiomo then beat the throw home on a sacrifice fly by Jazmin Daigle to shallow right to make it 1-0. Hayden then scored when Georgetown starter Lauren O'Leary was called for an illegal pitch.

Hayden drove a pitch from O'Leary over the left-field fence in the sixth for seventh homer of the year. Daigle followed with a single two batters later for the Chanticleers other hit.

Quolas (6-4) scattered four hits in the game, while striking out four and walking three. She worked around singles in each of the first four innings and stranded runners on second and third in both the first and fourth to keep the Hoyas (3-14) off the scoreboard. She then finished strong, recording outs on 10 of the last 11 at-bats to close the game.

Coastal is off Friday before resuming play in the tournament Saturday with a 2:30 p.m. against Middle Tennessee State, followed by another matchup with Georgetown. Three Chanticleer Challenge games will be played Friday between Middle Tennessee, Georgetown and James Madison, beginning at 9:30 a.m.