HUNTINGTON, W.V. – The Coastal Carolina softball team fell to the Marshall Thundering Herd, 9-4, on Saturday afternoon in Huntington, W.V. to level the series at one game apiece.

With the loss, Coastal falls to 28-19, 8-9 Sun Belt while Marshall improves to 21-22 and 7-10 Sun Belt.

The Chanticleers were first to get on the scoreboard in the top of the first inning after a leadoff double from Delaney Keith and a walk put runners on first and second base. Maddy Jennings then stepped up to the plate and reached on a fielder's choice, while Keith was able to pass home plate on an error to make the score 1-0.

The Thundering Herd responded in the bottom of the first frame when Camryn Michallas ripped an RBI single and Destiny Washington recorded an RBI groundout to give Marshall a 2-1 lead.

Marshall added two more runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, scoring on a pair of RBI singles to double its lead at 4-1.

In the top of the fifth inning, Coastal narrowed the gap to 4-2 when Keith laced an RBI double to right-center field to score Libby Pippin.

The Thundering Herd continued to fire in the bottom of the fifth inning when Michallas belted a three-run home run over the left-field wall and Brooklyn Ulrich smashed her third double of the day to extend the lead to 9-2.

The Chants continued to fight in the top of the fifth inning when pinch hitter Lucy Goodwin crushed a two-run single to center field to make the score 9-4, but Marshall was able to hold on for the win.

Nicolette Picone dropped to 5-8 on the year, giving up four runs, five hits, and a walk in her 3.1 innings of work.

The Chanticleers will take on the Thundering Herd for the series-deciding matchup tomorrow at noonET.

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 Athletics at goccusports.com.