HARTSVILLE, S.C. – The Emory & Henry Baseball Team (1-12, 0-6 SAC) held a lead on four separate occasions Monday afternoon, but eventually dropped the final game of a South Atlantic Conference series to Coker University (12-4, 3-0 SAC). The Cobras earned the 8-7 win in 10 innings.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Coker 8, Emory & Henry 7 (Ten Innings)
LOCATION – Hartsville, South Carolina
VENUE – Tom J. New Field at Dave Schmotzer Stadium
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (1-12, 0-6 SAC); Coker (12-4, 3-0 SAC)
How It Happened
Coker ran out to another early lead as they tallied a run in the first and another in the second to establish a 2-0 advantage. The Wasps would take their first lead of the game in the bottom of the third inning. Fifth-year catcher Camden Bailey (Sterling, Ill.) reached on a Coker error and advanced to second on a single from senior outfielder Khadeem Lewis (Chesterfield, Va.). Freshman shortstop Jaret Hoppes (Taylorsville, N.C.) laced an RBI single to score Bailey and senior third baseman Steven Smith (Salisbury, N.C.) followed with a two-out, two-RBI double down the line in left to plate Bailey and Hoppes to push the Wasps ahead 3-2.
The Cobras tied things up with a run on two hits in the top half of the fourth inning, but E&H went back in front in the bottom of the frame. Fifth-year designated hitter Caeden Howell (Roaring River, N.C.) led off with a double and moved up on a sacrifice bunt by sophomore second baseman Jack Ferguson (Abingdon, Va.). Bailey delivered a sacrifice fly to score Howell and the visitors from Emory held a narrow 4-3 advantage. Coker knotted the score up once more in the top of the fifth on the back of an RBI double to make it 4-4 but the Wasps had an answer. Lewis singled and Hoppes drew a walk to set the stage for Smith, who drilled an RBI single to left field. Howell was hit by a pitch to load the bases and Ferguson drew a walk to score Hoppes and run the margin back out to 6-4 in favor of E&H.
The back-and-forth affair continued in the top of the sixth as Coker scored a pair of runs on just one hit to bring them back level with the score at 6-6. That tally held until the bottom of the seventh when Smith doubled, moved to third on a wild pitch and scampered home on Howell's RBI single to put Emory & Henry back on top 7-6. CU scored another run in the top of the eighth and both squads were held off of the scoreboard in the ninth inning to force extras. Coker would not be denied on the afternoon as the Cobras pushed across a run on a pair of hits in the first extra inning, then sat down the Wasps in order in the bottom half to take the extra-inning victory by the 8-7 final score.
Tyler Satterly picked up the win for Coker as he threw 3.2 scoreless innings in relief, allowing just three hits. Fifth-year pitcher Jack Swarbrick (Haverhill, Mass.) took the loss for the Wasps after surrendering four runs on three hits while walking four and striking out a pair in 4+ innings on the mound. Smith was the catalyst for the E&H offense as he had three hits and three RBIs. Lewis and Howell each had a pair of knocks while Hoppes, Howell, Ferguson and Bailey all drove in a run.
Up Next
Emory & Henry has a short turnaround as the Wasps hit the road on Tuesday to make the trip to West Virginia to take on the Mountain Lions of Concord University. First pitch is scheduled for noon from Anderson Field.
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