HARTSVILLE, SC – Coker defeated St. Andrews Presbyterian College 5-1 in the first game and 8-7 in the second for a sweep in collegiate softball action.  The Cobras improve to 5-5 on the year and 3-1 in the CVAC, while the Knights drop to 2-10, 0-2 in the conference.

A two-RBI single by freshman Whitney Watts in the bottom of the fourth inning broke a 1-1 tie and gave CC the lead for good in game one.  Watts came around to score on a single by Jessica Blackwell for a 4-1 lead and Jacque Stewart made it 5-1 in the fifth with a solo blast.

Watts finished 2-3 in the game with two RBI and a run scored, and Stewart also went 2-3 with one RBI and two runs scored.  Sophomore Somer Bigham pitched six innings with one run allowed and five strikeouts to get the win.

Christan Morabito gave Coker a 1-0 lead in the first inning of game two when she doubled and then scored on a Blackwell single.  St. Andrews busted out with a four-run second inning, aided by a pair of Coker errors and three walks.

Coker answered with two runs in the bottom of the inning but the Knights made it 5-3 in the third with a RBI single by Veronica Bolus.  The Cobras powered back in the bottom of the inning however, with a big assist from freshman Eunice Nettles. 

Ashley Ladson scored on a single by Stewart to make it 5-4 and Nettles followed with a three-run homer to give CC a 7-5 lead.  The two teams went scoreless in the fourth and fifth innings but St. Andrews used a single, a double and a triple in the sixth to tie the score again at 7-7. 

Coker left two runners on base in the bottom of the inning but then retired SAPC 1-2-3 in the seventh.  Stewart came up big again with a lead-off double and Whitney Grooms came in to pinch run.  Nettles bunted to put Grooms on third and she raced home on a passed ball during the next at-bat for an 8-7 Coker win.

Blackwell started the game for CC but allowed three runs, only one earned, in one inning.  Junior Amanda Shelton pitched six innings with three earned runs allowed to get the victory.  Lucy Wolfe took the loss despite giving up only one run over four innings.

Stewart finished the game going 3-4 with one RBI and two runs scored and Blackwell ent 2-4 with one RBI.  Nettles drove in four runs and scored a run and Morabito went 3-4 with a run scored.  Devane Rushing led the Knights, going 2-3 with two RBI and a run scored and Wolfe also had two hits and scored twice.

The Cobras are scheduled to host Shaw University on Wednesday, February 23, at 2:00 PM.