Softball keeps SAC Tournament hopes alive with sweep of Coker in regular season finale

Salisbury, N.C. —- Needing at least one win to stay in the hunt for a spot in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament, the Catawba College softball team took both ends of a doubleheader over Coker in the regular season finale to give themselves a chance come Saturday.

GAME ONE | Catawba 9, Coker 8 - 8 innings

TEAM STATISTICS

- Catawba out-hit Coker 15-8

- Both teams recorded four extra-base hits; the Cobras had three of five homers

- The Catawba Indians committed two of three errors in the game

- Coker left four runners on base; Catawba stranded seven

- The Catawba Indians had four of five stolen bases

- Catawba's pitchers allowed five earned runs on eight hits and five walks, striking out six; Coker's staff allowed eight earned runs on 15 hits and two walks, striking out two

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

- Grace Flynn was 3-for-4 with a homer, two RBI and two runs scored

- Kary Hales also went 3-for-4 with a homer, two RBI and two runs scored

- Brianna Gallagher added two hits including a double with an RBI and two runs scored

- Rachel Pressley had a multi-hit game with an RBI and a run scored

- Brianna Herring earned the win in the circle, allowing one unearned run on just one hit in 3.2 innings of work

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST INNING

- Flynn led off the bottom half of the first with a homer down the left field line

- Hales followed with a two-out blast to take an early lead

SECOND INNING

- Flynn added to the lead with a one-out RBI single to left field

THIRD INNING

- Coker got on the board on an RBI triple and a throwing error that allowed the batter to score, cutting their deficit to a single run

FOURTH INNING

- Cheyenne Palmer's home run tied the game at 3

FIFTH INNING

- A pair of two-run homers just two batters apart allowed Coker to take a 7-3 lead in the top of the fifth

- Hales' RBI single and Maddy Altiers' sac fly got a couple run back with Coker leading 7-5 through five

SEVENTH INNING

- Down two, Gallagher and Hales reached safely to lead off the bottom of the seventh

- Altiers' RBI single cut the deficit to a single run

- Courtnee Carter's RBI sac fly tied the game at 7

EIGHTH INNING

- Coker bunted their international-rule runner over to third and drove her in on a sac fly

- Catawba did the same and then singled to put runners on second and third

- Pressley's RBI single to right field scored the tying run before Gallagher walked it off on the next at-bat with an RBI single to center field

GAME TWO | Catawba 7, Coker 2

TEAM STATISTICS

- Catawba out-hit Coker 12-9

- The Catawba Indians recorded five of eight extra-base hits and two of three homers

- The Cobras committed the lone error

- Both teams left eight runners on base

- Catawba recorded two of three stolen bases

- Catawba's starter went the distance, allowing two runs on nine hits and one walk, striking out six; Coker's pitchers allowed six earned runs on 12 hits and a walk, striking out one

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

- Alex Baquie earned the win in the circle, tossing seven innings with two runs allowed and six punchouts

- Gallagher was 3-for-3 with a homer, a double, two RBI and three runs scored; Gallagher's homer set her alone as the program's all-time singles-season home run leader (16)

- Hales added a pair of hits including a double with three RBI and a run scored

- Carter had two hits including a double; Jordan McCorkle homered among two hits

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST INNING

- Hales scored two in the bottom of the first with a single up the middle to take the early lead

- Hales ended up scoring on a Coker error to push the lead to 3-0

THIRD INNING

- Gallagher homered to lead off the third to take the single-season crown from interim head coach Allie Lyerly

FOURTH INNING

- Gallagher followed up in the fourth with an RBI single to left field; Hales' RBI groundout made it 6-0 Catawba

FIFTH INNING

- Coker got on the board with Ariana Fair's two-run shot to right center

- McCorkle hit a leadoff bomb in the bottom half to bring the total to the 7-2 final

UP NEXT

- Catawba awaits other action in the SAC tomorrow to determine its postseason fate