Cobras Take One At Catawba, Fall In Series

SALISBURY, NC. - Coker dropped two of three over the weekend at Catawba. The Cobras fought back to win game three to avoid a sweep, as they now move to Tuesday's contest with Mount Olive. 

BY THE NUMBERS:
Scores: G1 Catawba 3, Coker 0 | G2 Catawba 9, Coker 0 | G3 Coker 5, Catawba 1
Records: Coker 15-8 (5-4) | Catawba 16-6 (9-3)
Location: Salisbury, NC. | Newman Park

TOP PERFORMERS:
G1:
Gabriel Santiago: 2-3, 1 SB
Britton Adams: 2.0IP, 4 SO

G2:
Jaylen Mack: 3-4
Graham Whittle: 2.2IP, 5 SO, 0 ER

G3:
Jaylen Mack: 2-3, 2 RBI, 2 2B
Tyler Satterley: 4.2IP, 3 SO, 0 ER

HOW IT HAPPENED:
G1:
Catawba kept the Cobras off balance seemingly all night Friday. Catawba scratched all three of their runs in the first two innings, before it became a pitchers duel the rest of the way. 

Coker threatened in the fourth inning after Gabriel Santiago singled. He then stole a base before eventually being stranded to end the inning. In the fifth, the Cobras threatened once more. Alex Lazar reached on a single, Luke Alford doubled, and then Gavin Edens worked a walk to load the bases for the Cobras. The Catawba Indians then settled down quickly and retired the next two batters to end the Cobras chance. 

Catawba continued that momentum over the course of the final four innings, and eventually took down Coker 3-0. 

G2:
Game two saw Coker threaten in the first inning. Hunter Poole led off with a single through the right side, and later advanced to third after two sacrifices. Catawba produced a fly out to end the inning, and kept the Cobras off the board. 

Catawba scored first in the second inning thanks to a sacrifice fly after a leadoff triple, and later tacked on four more in the fourth on five hits. 

Coker was tasked with mounting a comeback, and in the top of the fifth threatened. Luke Alford roped a double followed by a Gabriel Santiago walk to put two on for Coker. Catawba quickly produced the third out of the inning yet again, keeping the Cobras off the board with a groundout to the pitcher. 

The Catawba Indians added insurance runs in the sixth, plating four to extend their lead to 9-0. They then continued to pitch well, keeping Coker off the basepaths, and eventually took game two of the series    9-0. 

G3:
After two quick innings to start game three, Coker struck first in the third inning. The Cobras saw their first two runners reach base safely via free passes, and eventually Jaylen Mack brought them around with a two RBI double. Gabriel Santiago quickly brought Mack in just one batter later with a single up the middle to give Coker a 3-0 lead. Luke Alford later singled through the right side, and Coker posted four runs in the inning. 

Tyler Satterley came on in relief and was dominant for the Cobras. He threw 4.2 innings allowing just three hits while striking out three. He came into the game in the third, and quickly shut down the Catawba chance to help Coker get back in the dugout. In the top of the fourth, the Cobras struck once again. The Cobras plated a run on a fielders choice, and led 5-1 through four complete. 

Satterley worked out of a jam in the bottom of the fourth and fifth to keep Catawba off the board, holding onto the 5-1 lead. Over the course of the final two innings, he saw just four batters, helping Coker leave Catawba with a win. 

UP NEXT:
Coker returns to Tom J. New Field Tuesday night when they play host to Mount Olive. First pitch is slated for 4:00 pm.