CONWAY – The Coastal Carolina softball team swept the two-game midweek doubleheader at St. John Stadium on Wednesday versus the Campbell Camels (20-13), 7-6 and 6-4, behind timely hitting and gutsy pitching to improve to 15-19 overall this season.
Graduate student
Kayla Rosado led the Chants with a 4-for-5 performance on the day, including five RBI, a home run, and a double.
CCU 7, CU 6 (8 inn.) (Game 1)
Senior Makiya Thomas gave the Chanticleers their third consecutive win with an RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning to defeat the Campbell Camels by the score of 7-6 in game one at St. John Stadium.
The Chanticleers and Camels combined for 21 hits and three lead changes before CCU pulled out the game one victory in extra innings.
Chanticleer starter Kaitlin Beasley-Polko pitched her second eight-inning game in three starts to earn the win and improve to 8-8 on the season. The Leonardtown, Md., native labored through a start that saw her allow 10 hits, six earned runs, and punch out nine batters.
After a one-out triple by junior Abbey Montoya, Rosado gave the Chants a 1-0 lead with a single into left field to extend her hitting streak to nine games.
However, the Chanticleers' lead was short-lived because in the top of the second inning, the Camels' Bri Bryant hit her fourth home run in four games to give the Camels a 3-1 advantage.
The Chanticleers roared back in the next half inning as they chased Campbell starter Kayla Howard from the game with five runs on five hits off the bats Riley Zana, Mary Sobataka, Taylor Swieigart, Makiya Thomas, and Stavi Augur.
Campbell knotted the score at six runs apiece in the top of the third inning as they scored three times, highlighted by back-to-back home runs by Claudia Ware and Delaney McDilda.
Both pitchers, Beasley-Polko and Campbell reliever Georganna Barefoot settled down to pitch scoreless softball over the next four-half innings before Thomas connected with the walk-off hit single against Barefoot to give CCU the 7-6 victory.
Thomas added her third three-hit game in five times out as she went 3-for-4 with a RBI triple to up her hitting streak to seven games.
In the loss, Barefoot dropped to 10-5 on the season as she pitched 6.1 innings, allowed four runs, and three earned on five hits.
CCU 6, CU 4 (Game 2)
A pair of three-run innings for Coastal Carolina in game two was all that they needed to earn the 6-4 win and the sweep of the CU.
After Campbell scored a run in the top of the third inning off from Bri Bryant's second long ball of the day, Coastal scored three times in the bottom of the third.
Kayla Rosado highlighted the scoring as she extended her team's season-high hitting streak to 10 games with a double into the left-field gap.
Campbell plated a pair of runs in top of the fifth to tie the score 3-3 on Coastal Carolina starter Iyanla De Jesus. The Coastal starter allowed a run-scoring wild pitch to Claudia Ware and then Kayla Fredendall tied the score with an RBI single back up the middle of the infield.
However, the score didn't remain tied long because after a walk to Stavi Augur in the bottom of the fifth, the Chanticleers, four and five hitters, Kayla Rosado and junior Sydney Guess, blasted back-to-back home runs, giving Coastal a 6-3 lead.
Campbell made it nail-biter in the seventh as they chased De Jesus after 130 pitches.
Kaitlin Beasley-Polko entered the game with one out in the top of the seventh and a runner on first. The righty allowed back-to-back singles to Fredendall and Diana Parker, but then struck out the final two batters to earn her first save of the season and give CCU their second four-game winning streak of the year.
In the victory, Rosado had a season-high four RBI with a double and the previously mentioned home run.
The sophomore De Jesus picks up her third win of the season as she allowed five hits and four earned runs in 6.1 innings of work. The Mill Creek, Wash., native also helped herself at the plate as she tied a season-high two hits and a walk.
Camels' starter Megan Richards takes the loss and drops to 5-3 as she worked four innings, allowed six hits, six runs, and five earned.
Coastal outfielder Makiya Thomas' hitting streak was snapped at seven games in game two as she went 0-for-2 with a walk.
The Chanticleers return to the diamond this weekend at home, April 24-25, with a three-game Sun Belt Conference series versus the UT Arlington Mavericks.
For complete coverage of CCU softball, follow the Chanticleers on social media at @CoastalSoftball (Twitter), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), and facebook.com/CCUChanticleers(Facebook) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina.
