CONWAY, S.C. – Alexander Meckley pitched a complete game victory for No. 25 Coastal Carolina (4-2) as the Chanticleers defeated Ball State (2-3) 12-2 in a game that was called after the top of the seventh inning with a 10-run rule in tournament play. 
 
Meckley (1-0), a junior, earned his first victory as a Chanticleer as he allowed just three hits, two earned runs, no walks, and struck out eight in seven innings of work.
 
While Meckley was shutting down the Cardinals offense, Caden Bodine, Graham Brown, and Jake Books each had multi-hit games. Bodine went 2-for-4 with a homerun and three RBI. Brown went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and one RBI, while Books also went 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBI.  Zack Beach connected for his team-leading third homer of the season with two RBI.
 
In the bottom of the first inning, the Chanticleers used small ball (aka Gilly ball) 
to take a 1-0 lead. Sam Antonacci reached base on a hit by pitch to lead off the inning, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Blake Barthol, and then scored on a RBI groundout by Derek Bender.
 
Ball State would answer in the top of the second inning when Matthew Gonzalez doubled down the right field line and later scored on a wild pitch by Meckley.
 
With the score tied 1-1, Coastal Carolina erupted for eight runs on six hits in the bottom of the third inning to open a commanding 9-1 advantage. Cameron Sebuck led off inning by drawing a walk and quickly moved to third base on a double down the right field line by Antonacci. Bodine cleared the bases with his first homerun of the 2024 season as he cleared the teal wall in right-center.
 
Barthol then reached when he was hit by a pitch and Bender drew a walk before a RBI double down the left field line by Brown and a two-RBI triple to center by Books gave the Chants a 7-1 lead. Ty Barrango hit a RBI double to centerfield, stole third, and scored the final run of the inning on a single to right field by Sebuck. 
 
After a 20-minute weather delay before their next at-bat, Coastal tallied three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning on a two-run homer by Beach that scored Bender and a sacrifice fly by Barrango that plated Brown.
 
On the day, coastal Carolina had nine batters with at least one hit and recorded 12 RBI as a team.  Seven of the Chants' 13 hits went for extra bases, including four doubles, one triple and two homeruns.
 
Merritt Beeker (1-1) took the loss for Ball State as he allowed eight earned runs on five hits and two walks while striking out three in 2.1 innings of work. 
 
Coastal Carolina will host Cincinnati at 2 pm on Sunday, February 25, at Springs Brooks Stadium.  Ball State will play Illinois at 9 a.m. on Sunday in the first game of the final day of the round-robin tournament.
 
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