Conway, SC (WBTW) — No. 19 Coastal Carolina scored in each of the first six innings and got 4.2-scoreless innings out of the bullpen from senior right-handed pitcher Matt Eardensohn to beat the University of Connecticut Huskies 10-7 on a foggy Saturday night at Springs Brooks Stadium.
The win is the second-straight for the Chanticleers who improve to 9-2 on the season. The loss drops UConn to 4-5 on the year.
Eardensohn (2-0) entered the game in the fifth and allowed just one hit, walked one and struck out a career-high seven batters over 4.2 innings out of the bullpen to earn the win. He is now 9-0 on the mound for his Chants career.
Junior Anthony Veneziano got the start on the hill but was lifted after 4.1 innings, allowing seven runs, five earned, on 10 hits, two walks and four strikeouts.
Again, Kieton Rivers (2-for-3, 2B, HBP, BB, 3 RBIs, run) paced the Chants offense with a team-high three RBIs, while catcher Kyle Skeels (2-for-5, 2 RBIs, run) drove in two RBIs in the win.
Outfielder Cameron Pearcey (2-for-5, 2 runs, SB) had two hits, while designated hitter Jared Johnson (1-for-3, 2 RBIs) also had two RBIs on the night.
UConn’s Jimmy Wang (0-1) suffered the loss, as he was hit up for five runs, four of which were earned, on five hits, two walks and two strikeouts over 1.1 innings out of the bullpen.
The Huskies matched Coastal with 11 base hits, highlighted by John Tappa (3-for-5, HR, 2 RBIs, 2 runs) and Thad Phillips (1-for-3, HR, 3 RBIs, run) who each had a home run and combined to drive in five RBIs.
Coastal took an early 2-0 lead in the first on a two-run single off the bat of Rivers, only to see a two-run home run by UConn’s Phillips in the top of the second tie the game up at 2-2.
After the home team pulled back out in front at 3-2 in the bottom of the second on a Zach Biermann sacrifice fly, the Huskies got another two-run home run this time from Toppa in the top of the third to push the visitors back on top at 4-3.
The Chants tied the game back up at 4-4 on a Rivers RBI double in the bottom of the third and then retook the lead with a four-run inning in the fourth highlighted by a pair of two-run singles off the bats of Skeels and Johnson to put the score at 8-4 through four innings of play.
The scoring continued with the Huskies pushing across three more runs in the top of the fifth on three hits, a sacrifice fly and two Chant errors to cut the Coastal lead to 8-7, only to see the home team in white add a run in the fifth on a wild pitch and another in the sixth on a Scott McKeon sacrifice fly to put the score at 10-7.
That was all that Eardensohn would need, as the righty allowed just one runner on base over the final three innings, a walk in the seventh, and struck out the last five batters of the game to finish off the Huskies for the win.
The Chants, who left 13 runners on base for the game, walked 11 times compared to just five strikeouts at the plate.
UConn left five runners on base but walked three times compared to 11 strikeouts.
Coastal (9-2) returns to Vrooman Field at Springs Brooks Stadium tomorrow afternoon to take on the Indiana Hoosiers (6-4) at noon.
