Monroe, LA (WBTW) – No. 16 Coastal Carolina scored a season-high 15 runs to down the ULM Warhawks 15-7 and complete the Sun Belt Conference series sweep on Sunday afternoon at Warhawk Field in Monroe, La.
For the third-straight game, the Chanticleers used a big inning, this time a sixth-run seventh, to pull away with the win. Coastal is now 11-1-1 on the season when scoring four runs or more in at least one inning in the game.
The Chants are 9-0 all-time versus ULM and have won each of their last three conference weekend series dating back to last season.
The offense was once again led by redshirt sophomore Jake Wright (4-for-5, HR, 2B, 6 RBIs, 3 runs) as the outfielder was just a triple shy of the cycle and drove in a career-high six RBIs in the win.
Fellow Chants Zach Biermann (2-for-3, 2B, 3 BB, 2 RBIs, 2 runs), Cory Wood (2-for-4, 2B, BB, 2 RBIs, 3 runs, S), Cameron Pearcey (2-for-5, 2 2B, 2 runs) and Scott McKeon(2-for-4, 2B, BB, RBI, run) all had two hits apiece in the win.
Senior hurler Matt Eardensohn (3-0) picked up his third win of the season and moved to 10-0 all-time at Coastal with five strikeouts over 3.0-scoreless innings out of the bullpen.
The pitching staff overall struck out 10 batters and walked just three in the conference victory.
ULM had a weekend-high seven runs and eight base hits led by Trent Tingelstad (4-for-5, 2B, 4 RBIs, run). Three other Warhawks had an RBI, while four other ULM hitters had a base hit in the loss.
Starter Kayleb Sanderson (2-2) was roughed up early in the loss, as the Chants scored six runs on seven hits, two walks and two strikeouts over the first two innings of play.
Wright got the scoring going in the top of the first, as the left-handed hitter lined a double to right field to score Wood from second. Biermann followed with an RBI single to right himself to plate Wright and put the visitors in front 2-0 right out of the gates.
Three batters later, McKeon singled through the left side to plate Jared Johnson and put the Chants up 3-0 after a half an inning of play.
The offense picked up where it left off in the top of the second, as Wright followed a Wood single and a Pearcey double with a three-run shot over the bull in right field to double the Coastal lead at 6-0. The home run was Wright’s second of the season.
ULM clawed its way on to the scoreboard in the bottom of the second, as the Warhawks took advantage of not one, but two Coastal Carolina fielding errors to score one run on an RBI fielder’s choice and three more on a bases-loaded three-run double from Tingelstad to trim the Chants lead to two at 6-4 after just two innings of play.
After Coastal added a run in the top of the fifth to put the score at 7-4, the Warhawks got a lead-off single and a double to left field to start the bottom half of the fifth. Back-to-back ground outs scored two ULM runners and the Chants lead was cut back down to just one at 7-6.
Neither team scored in the sixth to keep the game a one-run game going into the seventh where the Chants would blow the game open with a six-run inning highlighted by a double from McKeon, an RBI double off the bat of Wood, a two-run single up the middle from Wright, a Biermann RBI double followed by a Kieton Rivers RBI double down the right field line to push the visitors in front by seven at 13-6.
With the damage done, the Chants added a run in the eighth on a Wood sacrifice fly and another in the ninth on a wild pitch to put the score at 15-6.
ULM pushed across one run in the bottom of the ninth on a Tingelstad RBI single to put the final score at 15-7.
The Chants left 12 men on base for the game, while the Warhawks stranded just six runners on base.
After the 12-day road trip, the Chants (16-4-1, 3-0 Sun Belt) will have a few days off before returning to action at home versus the Troy Trojans (9-11, 0-3 Sun Belt) on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, March 22-24.
