After falling to #20 Coastal Carolina in game one, Georgia Southern was able to split the final two games with the Chanticleers, avoiding a sweep while handing Coastal Carolina their first conference loss.

Game 2- CCU 15, GS 2

In game two on Friday, the Eagles had nothing going for them, losing rather handily to the Chanticleers by a score of 15-2.

In the contest, CCU hit three home runs, including one over the Blue Monster in right field.

Sophomore RHP Seth Shuman was credited with the loss allowing 10 runs in just 4.2 innings.

There were a few bright spots for the Eagles, however, as sophomore left fielder Mason McWhorter hit a two-run home run for the Eagles, and redshirt junior RHP Matt Geiger made his first appearance in over 1,000 days after battling multiple injuries.

Game 3- CCU 4, GS 5

In the series finale, GS used a five run fifth inning to solidify a much needed victory.

It was the Eagles’ junior closer, Chase Cohen who got the start, which was his first of the season, going seven innings deep while only allowing a run on 118 pitches.

When asked about how he was able to stymie the Chanticleer batters, Cohen talked about how his pitches were working.

“Everything was going, I was using curveball, slider, fastball and changeups to lefties and righties and was able to use every pitch effectively,” Cohen said.

Offensively, Georgia Southern loaded the bases in the fifth, and used a ground-ball single just past the shortstop off the bat of redshirt freshman Blake Simmons to get the runs and take a 5-1 lead.

Coastal Carolina used a lead-off home run to draw within three in the top of the ninth, and pushed across two more runs before a late pitching change made by Head Coach Rodney Hennon helped end the game. Freshman RHP Hayden Harris struck out the final batter with runners in scoring position to get the win.

After the game, Head Coach Rodney Hennon talked about his team’s effort.

“Chase Cohen was really good for us today,” Hennon said. “He set the tone for us today and we were fortunate to get some two out hits from Mitchell Golden and Mason McWhorter to get things rolling and it led to a five run inning.”

What’s Next?

The Eagles play five games this week, including home games on Tuesday against The Citadel, and Wednesday against Mercer. Both games are scheduled to start at 6 p.m.

Ryan Kostensky, The George-Anne Sports Candidate, gasports@georgiasouthern.edu