HPU Baseball Falls To No. 2 Coastal Carolina In Big South Semifinals, 9-3

• High Point was eliminated from the 2015 Big South Baseball Championship with a 9-2 loss to Coastal Carolina in the semifinals on Friday.
• Junior Michael Hennessey took the loss for the Panthers after giving up three earned runs on five hits in two innings of work.
• Sophomore Chris Clare went 2-4 with two doubles and two RBI for HPU.

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – The High Point University baseball season came to a close with a 9-3 loss to No. 2 Coastal Carolina in the Big South Semifinals on Friday afternoon in Boiling Springs, N.C.

“Our guys played some pretty good baseball down the stretch and we made a run at it but we just weren’t good enough today,” head coach Craig Cozart said. “This group of guys did things the right way and played the game hard. These seniors are a special group. They have done a lot for this program and a lot for this university. For that I am very proud.”

Junior Michael Hennessey got the start on the mound for HPU and took the loss, dropping to 2-6 for the season. Hennessey gave up three earned runs in two innings of work on five hits with one strikeout.

Andrew Beckwith got the win for Coastal Carolina in his first start of the season, improving to 5-4. The right-hander pitched eight innings and allowed two earned runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out three.

The Panthers finish the season with a 29-26 overall record making it their second-straight season above .500. Coastal Carolina improves to 38-19 and advances to the Big South Championship Game where it will play top-seeded Radford.

High Point jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning after stringing together three-straight hits. Senior Cody Manzella doubled with one out and was followed by a single by freshman Carson Jackson and a double by sophomore Chris Clare to score the first run. Freshman Hunter Lee then drove in the Jackson for the second run with a sacrifice fly.

Coastal Carolina scored once in the second and four times in the third to come back and take a 5-2 lead. Josh Crump drove in the first run with a two-out RBI single in the second. Zach Remillard tied the game with a safety squeeze in the third before an RBI single by Casey Schroeder and an RBI double by Seth Lancaster brought home three more runs.

CCU added two runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth to extend its lead to 9-2. The Chanticleers scored both runs in the fourth on a throwing error by Hunter Lee then got RBI hits from Crump and Anthony Marks in the fifth.

High Point added a run in the ninth as Jackson and Clare hit back-to-back doubles to make the score 9-3. The RBI double was the second of the day for Clare.

Clare went 2-4 on the day with two RBI in the loss. Senior Brady Williamson and Jackson both finished 2-4 with a double at the plate. Senior Spencer Angelis also reached base twice with two walks on the day.