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
