HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Coastal Carolina softball team split a doubleheader versus the James Madison Dukes in Harrisonburg, Va., on Friday. The Chants took an 8-4 victory to win the series in game one, but fell 8-5 in game two.
With the win, the Chanticleers conclude the regular season 34-20 and 14-10 in league play, which marks Coastal's best conference record since 2016.
Game 1: Coastal Carolina 8, James Madison 4
JMU took an early lead in the bottom of the first inning when Bella Henzler hit an RBI single to put the Dukes up 1-0.
The Chants answered back in the top of the third inning when Riley Zana crushed a sacrifice fly to center field to level the score at 1-1. Georgia Hood then laced an RBI single through the left side to drive in Delaney Keith and give CCU a 2-1 lead.
The runs kept flowing in the top of the third when Coastal brought in two more on a fielding miscue by the JMU right fielder to push the Chants ahead 4-1.
CCU built on its lead in the top of the fifth inning when Maddy Jennings ripped an RBI single to third base and Brie Normandin belted a two-run single of her own to give Coastal a healthy 7-1 advantage.
The Dukes cut the deficit to 7-3 in the bottom of the fifth inning when Hallie Hall smashed a two-run home run over the left-centerfield wall, but the Chants responded in the top of the sixth when Iyanla De Jesus hit an RBI single to extend Coastal's lead to 8-3.
JMU tallied one run back in the bottom of the sixth inning on a solo home run but it was not enough to come back and CCU took the 8-4 victory.
Raelee Brabham picked up her 24th win in the circle, striking out nine batters while allowing four runs in her 12th complete game of the season.
Game 2: Coastal Carolina 5, James Madison 8
Coastal started hot in the opening frame when Hood belted an RBI single to center field to give CCU a 1-0 lead.
The Dukes tabbed the equalizer in the bottom of the first after Reed Bulter crushed a leadoff home run over the left field wall to make the score 1-1.
In the top of the second inning, CCU loaded the bases on a Libby Pippin single and two walks. Zana then reached on a walk to drive in Pippin to regain the lead at 2-1.
JMU took the lead for the first time in the game in the bottom of the second frame tallying three runs on an RBI single, a groundout, and a CCU miscue to take the lead at 4-2.
The back-and-forth game continued in the top of the fourth inning when Zana launched a three-run home run over the left field wall to push the Chants in front at 5-4.
In the bottom of the fifth frame, JMU broke the game open when Hall smashed a three-run double through the right side and the Dukes added one more run on a fielder's choice to take control at 8-5.
Abby Henderson fell to 3-2 on the year, giving up two runs and two walks in her 0.1 innings of work.
The Chanticleers will be back in action for the 2024 Sun Belt Conference Tournament in San Marcos, Texas on May 6-11.
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.
