CONWAY, S.C. — Campbell baseball fell to No. 12 Coastal Carolina 11-2 on Sunday afternoon in the Brittain Resorts Invitational finale at Springs Brooks Stadium.
AJ Hrica (2-for-2, BB, HBP) reached base safely in four of his five plate appearances by way of a walk, a hit by pitch and a pair of base hits. His multi-hit performance was his first as a Fighting Camel. Catcher Marcus Skundrich (2-for-4, R) made his Campbell debut by earning the start behind the dish, also recording a multi-hit outing with two singles.
Tyler Anshaw (1-for-2, BB, R), Matthew Barefoot (1-for-4, RBI) and Luis Gimenez (1-for-3, BB) each collected a base hit, rounding out CU's seven hits on the day.
Louisburg College transfer Kevin Westlake (0-1) suffered the loss in his first start as a Camel, allowing five runs across three innings, while Coastal's Austin Kitchen (1-0) collected the win.
Coastal Carolina added a run in the first, three runs in the second and another run in the third to jump out to a 5-0 lead. Campbell freshman Zach Adams made his collegiate pitching debut in the fourth, striking out the first two Chanticleers he faced en route to a scoreless frame.
CCU scored two more in the fifth to go ahead 7-0 before the Camels got on the board in the top of the sixth. With two outs, Anshaw reached base on an error and then Skundrich singled through the left side. Grant Harris also reached via an error, which allowed Anshaw to score.
With runners on second and third, Barefoot sent an 0-2 pitch into left field, scoring Skundrich, but a throw from Coastal's left fielder nailed Harris at the plate, keeping Coastal's 7-2 lead intact.
The Chanticleers put two more on the board in both the sixth and seventh innings. Campbell reliever Tyson Messer pitched a scoreless eighth, leaving the bases loaded with a strikeout looking and then an inning-ending double play. Campbell turned three double plays on the day, each of which ended an inning.
Campbell will begin an eight-game home stand on Wednesday when the Camels welcome nationally ranked East Carolina to Jim Perry Stadium for a 5 p.m. first pitch.
