University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Coastal Carolina
#12 Coastal Carolina Holds Off UNC Asheville 9-4
03.15.2009 | Baseball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - #12 Coastal Carolina got four hits and three RBI from David Anderson as the Chanticleers held off UNC Asheville 9-4 in Big South Conference baseball action Sunday evening at McCormick Field.
The teams were scheduled to play a double-header on Sunday but rain in the morning in the Asheville area forced the teams to play just one game. The series will try and conclude on Monday with a double-header scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
The Bulldogs (3-12, 1-3-0 BSC) battled Coastal Carolina (15-1, 1-0 BSC) on the day as they rallied from a 5-0 deficit to cut the lead to 5-4 with three runs in the sixth inning but the Chanticleer bullpen kept Asheville at bay the rest of the way.
The Bulldogs were led at the plate by left-fielder Beau Zinman who went 3-for-4 with one run scored and a double.
Coastal Carolina starter Cody Wheeler (3-0) picked up the win with five innings pitched. He scattered five hits, allowed one run, struck out four with no walks. T.J. Swank finished the game for the Chants and earned his first save with two scoreless innings of work.
The Chanticleers struck for two runs in the first on a ground-out from Chance Gilmore and run-scoring single from Anderson.
The visitors pushed across two runs in the fourth as a sacrifice fly from Daniel Bowman and run-scoring double from Taylor Motter to increase the lead to 4-0.
Anderson singled in Gilmore in the fifth to pad the margin to 5-0.
The Bulldogs got on the board in the bottom of the fifth. Freshman Jordan Lurie's infield single plated Danny Baatz to narrow the lead to 5-1.
Asheville made the game close with three unearned runs in the sixth. Reed Kreiser led off with a double and then went to third on Zinman's double to right field.
CCU reliever Tom Winegardner got the next two outs and almost escaped from the jam but a throwing error by Motter at shortstop scored two runs to cut the lead to 5-3. A pinch-hit single from Derrick Hopkins got the Dogs even closer at 5-4.
Gilmore got a run back in the seventh with a sacrifice fly to get the lead to 6-4.
The Chanticleers sealed the victory in the ninth with three insurance runs. Anderson's infield single padded the lead to 7-4. Adam Rice then delivered a two-run double to increase the lead to 9-4.
