HARTSVILLE, S.C. – The Coker University baseball team came up short in Saturday's (Mar. 7) doubleheader against the Tusculum University Pioneers.

Game One

The Pioneers jumped out to an early 7-0 lead in the first inning, but the Cobras were not done yet. In the bottom of the third, AJ Vonderschmidt scored Zach Capaldi on a sacrifice fly to bring home the first run of the afternoon for the Cobras. Vito Castronovo singled to center field in the bottom of the seventh inning, scoring Reilly Hall for the second Cobra run of the game. However, Tusculum held on for a 17-2 victory. Matt Hyatt pitched well for Coker out of the bullpen, striking out three over the course of two innings.

Game Two

Once again, Tusculum was able to jump out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning. In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Cobras rallied back to tie the game thanks to RBI's from Chase Bruno and Phill Griffor. The Pioneers reclaimed the lead in the top half of the fifth, and never looked back as they cruised to a 9-3 win. Aaron Mitchell pitched well for the Cobras, striking out seven through 4.2 innings.

McDonald's Player of the Game – Grant Thompson (three hits)

The Cobras will be back in action on Sunday (Mar. 8) for the final game of the series against Tusculum. First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m., with live coverage available at www.cokercobras.com.