CONWAY, S.C. - Georgia Southern Baseball split a Saturday doubleheader with Coastal Carolina, dropping the opener 9-7 before taking a nail-biting 13-12 win in the finale.
Mason McWhorter went 4-for-5 in the finale, just a triple shy of the cycle. He drove in six runs for the day with two in the first game and four in game two. Georgia Southern will play five games in Statesboro this week, beginning with The Citadel on Tuesday.
GAME ONE
Coastal Carolina jumped all over starting pitcher
Tyler Owens, getting four runs off the twirler in his one inning of work.
Joe Nahas came in out of the bullpen and quieted the Chanticleers, going four scoreless with seven strikeouts, but did allow two runs in the sixth inning before exiting. Coastal got three runs in the sixth to hang a seven-spot.
The Eagles got a run in the third get off the mark, cashing in a one out hit batter for a run on
Mason McWhorter's sacrifice fly. Georgia Southern tacked on four more in the seventh to cut the lead to 7-5 heading into the stretch.
Tyler Martin singled through the left side with the bases loaded, followed by a walk to
Noah Ledford.
Jason Swan knocked in two more with a single to left as the Eagles got back into the game.
Two more runs crossed for the good guys in the eighth inning as Georgia Southern leveled the game at 7-7. A leadoff double, followed by a walk put the Eagles in business with runners moving up on a sacrifice bunt. McWhorter drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, and Ledford tied the game with a single to right on the first pitch he saw.
Coastal answered immediately in the bottom of the eighth, getting a pair of runs to take the 9-7 win.
GAME TWO
Coastal took an early lead again in game two, this time getting a run in the first. Georgia Southern answered in the second with four runs off three hits and an error. RBI singles from
Austin Thompson and
Christian Avant put the Eagles on top, while a two RBI single from McWhorter made it a 4-1 lead.
Coastal evened things up in the bottom of the second with a three-spot, knocking starting pitcher
Daniel Collins from the game and leveling the game at 4-4. Swan gave Georgia Southern its second lead of the day with a solo home run into the bullpen in left. McWhorter made it a 6-4 lead an inning later with a solo home run of his own.
Coastal got its second lead of the game in the fifth inning, touching up the Eagle bullpen for three runs off two hits, a walk and a hit batter. The Eagles didn't let the lead lie in teal hands long, plating three in the sixth to take a 9-7 lead. After a walk to Avant and a HBP to
Steven Curry, McWhorter drove in a run with a double to right. Ledford singled to right with the bases loaded later in the inning to drive in two and re-take the lead.
The Chanticleers got a one out walk in the seventh, but
Tristan Roberts came in to shut the door. The senior made his first appearance since March 9th and retired both batters he faced to quell the CCU threat in the seventh. Minutes later, the Eagles tacked on a pair of insurance runs on a Ledford RBI single through the left side that drove in Curry and McWhorter, pushing the lead to 11-7.
Georgia Southern tacked on two more insurance runs in the top of the ninth with RBI singles from Curry and Miller to make the lead 13-7 with three outs remaining.
Coastal got things going with a double and two walks in the bottom of the ninth to load the bases. A sacrifice fly, followed by a three run home run cut the lead to two. A double down the right field line scored the fifth run of the inning to cut the lead to 13-12 with one out. A strike out, followed by a ground out ended the game.
Jacob Parker worked two shutout innings without allowing a hit to take his first win of the season.
David Johnson retired the final two outs for his first save of the year.
UP NEXT
The Eagles are back home for the final five game week of the 2019 schedule this week. The Citadel comes to town on Tuesday and the College of Charleston follows suit a day later for the third game this season between the clubs. South Alabama will be in Statesboro for a weekend series beginning on Friday.
