Coastal Carolina Slips Past UNC Asheville, 2-1

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Tyler Chadwick's check swing ground-out drove in the winning run in the top of the ninth inning as Coastal Carolina completed a three-game sweep with a 2-1 victory over UNC Asheville Sunday afternoon at Greenwood Field.

The win by the Chanticleers (17-6, 3-0 BSC) was their seventh straight. Asheville fell to 10-13 overall and 1-5 in the Big South Conference.

Bulldog starter Joe Zayatz was brilliant for the Bulldogs as he slowed down the hot-hitting Coastal Carolina attack. The Chanticleers bat had scored 25 runs and pounded out 30 hits in the first two games of the series. Zayatz pitched seven innings, allowing just four hits and one run with four strikeouts.

But Coastal's pitching was just as good. Four different Chanticleer hurlers limited the Bulldogs to one run on five hits. Bobby Holmes pitched the final 3.1 innings for CCU and improved to 3-0 on the season.

Joe Tietjen led Asheville at the plate with two hits and a run-scoring single. Eric Connolly had a double and scored the Bulldogs lone run for the Blue & White.

In the top of the ninth, G.K. Young had a bloop single to center to lead off the frame. A walk put runners on first and second. David Parrett's sacrifice bunt moved the runners to second and third.

Asheville reliever Nick Schavone (2-1) faced Chadwick. His first pitch to Chadwick saw the first baseman try to check his swing but he managed to hit the ball to the right side which scored pinch-runner Josh Crump with the go-ahead run at 2-1. Schavoe retired Chadwick at first.

Holmes got the Bulldogs out in order in the bottom of the ninth.

Asheville opened the scoring in the third inning. Connolly led off with a long double to right-center. Two outs later, Tietjen singled sharply to center-field, scoring Connolly for a 1-0 Bulldog lead.

The Dogs maintained the lead until the sixth. Anthony Marks led off with an infield single. With two outs, Young hit an RBI-double that landed just on the chalk down the right-field line to knot the game at 1-1.

UNC Asheville plays again this Tuesday afternoon when the Bulldogs host Tennessee Tech at Greenwood Field starting at 4 p.m.