CONWAY, S.C. – On day two of the Kickin' Chicken Classic, the Coastal Carolina (2-2) softball team split a pair of games on Saturday against the Georgetown Hoyas and the Purdue Boilermakers.
Game 1 – vs. Georgetown
Four different Chanticleers recorded home runs, headlined by
Abbey Montoya's walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the seventh inning as Coastal handed the Georgetown Hoyas a 13-9 loss.
The Hoyas added one run in the top of the first inning, before adding three more in the top of the second to go up 4-0 on the host.
Coastal started the scoring efforts in the bottom of the fourth as
Payton Ebersole scored from third on a wild pitch.
Riley Zana's three-run home run over the centerfield fence in the same at-bat put the score at 4-4.
Georgetown added five runs in the top of the fifth inning to pull back in front before
Keirstin Roose sent her second home run in as many days over the left field wall to make the score 9-6.
Maddy Jenning's double in the bottom of the fifth inning started the scoring momentum for the Chanticleers as
Jay Wrightsman recorded her first career home run on the 12th pitch of her at bat, a two-run shot over the left field fence trim the Hoyas' lead to one at 9-8.
Montoya's solo home run to left center field in the bottom of sixth tied the game at 9-9.
Madison Hudson walked for the Chants to start CCU's final push in the bottom of the seventh inning. Ebersole squared to bunt and beat out the throw to first, advancing Hudson before Roose earned her second walk of the weekend and load the bases.
Montoya then blasted her first career walk-off grand slam over the right field wall for the 13-9 walk-off win.
After allowing a run on a wild pitch,
Nicolette Picone (1-0) threw three scoreless innings to earn her first collegiate win.
Ebersole finished the night going 3-for-4, while Montoya finished with two home runs and a game-leading five RBIs. Zana recorded three RBIs, while Roose and Wrightsman added two, respectively.
Game 2 – vs. Purdue
Purdue got on the board early adding two runs in the top of the first inning before back-to-back doubles by Jennings and Wrightsman tied the game at 2-2.
The Boilermakers added three more runs over the third and fourth innings to take a 5-2 lead into the bottom of the fourth, before Roose buried her second home run of the night into the palm trees in center field for the lone run of the fifth inning to make the score 5-3.
Purdue added four more runs in the top of the sixth inning to push its lead to 9-3, as the Chants'
Iyanla De Jesus answered with her first home run of the season over the right center field wall in the bottom half of the inning to put the score at 9-4, where it would stand at the end of the game.
With a lineup that saw eight underclassmen, the Chanticleers continued to fight throughout the contest and will look to finish the weekend back in the win column. CCU will return to action tomorrow for the final day of the Kickin' Chicken Classic at St. John Stadium. Coastal will face East Carolina at 12:15 p.m. ET.
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 at www.GoCCUsports.com.
