Over the last couple of games, the Clemson baseball team has made a habit of falling into early deficits.
On Saturday, the Tigers trailed Wake Forest 10-0 after the top of the third before making it a competitive 12-10 Demon Deacon win. Sunday, the Deacs got out to a 6-0 lead only to have the Tigers come back and record a 7-6 walk-off victory at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.
Tuesday night, the DKS magic ran out.
21st-ranked Coastal Carolina hit two three-run home runs in the top of the third inning and never looked back as the Chanticleers posted an 8-2 triumph over the 3rd-ranked Tigers. The victory was CCU’s first over Clemson in their last five meetings, with the teams set to conclude their two-game season series in Conway on May 6th.
In what was a midweek tale of two pitching staffs, CCU’s five were much sharper than the six used by the Tigers. Clemson walked five and hit seven batters, while the Chanticleers allowed just four walks and tallied nine strikeouts. CCU’s defense also turned three double plays and allowed just two of 12 base runners to score.
Sebastian Alexander and Blagen Pado were the offensive catalysts, with each connecting on a three-run home run to give CCU the early 6-0 lead. The Chanticleers added an insurance run in the top of the fifth to grab a 7-0 advantage before Andrew Ciufo led off the bottom of the fifth inning with his third homer of the year to put the Tigers on the board.
In the top of the eighth inning, Dean Mihos lined a run-scoring double. Clemson responded with a run in the bottom half of the frame on Luke Gaffney’s sacrifice fly.
Oliver Ellison (1-1) earned the win for CCU by working the fifth inning. Tiger starter Noah Samol (0-1) suffered the loss.
Clemson concludes its 16-game homestand by playing Presbyterian on Wednesday at 6 p.m. Meantime, Coastal Carolina will travel out to San Marcos, Texas, to face Sun Belt rival Texas State this weekend.
Box Score
Clemson HC Erik Bakich — CCU Postgame
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