SOFTBALL SECURES SWEEP IN RECORD-BREAKING DAY FOR ARI FAIR

Hartsville, SC - What started in a dominant 11-0 win in Game 1 ended dramatically as clutch offense secured both a 12-11 win in Game 2 and a sweep for Coker Softball.

By The Numbers:

Final Score: Coker 11, Fayetteville St 0 (Game 1 - 5 Innings) | Coker 12, Fayetteville St 11 (Game 2 - 5 Innings called with weather)
Records: Coker 5-3 (0-0 SAC), Fayetteville St 0-4 (0-0 CIAA)
Location: Hartsville, SC | Saleeby-Stokes Field

Top Performers

Madie Andrews: 1 hit in 2 at-bats, 1 RBI, complete-game shutout with five strikeouts (Game 1)
Payton Brigman: 2 hits in 3 at-bats, 2 runs, 3 RBIs (Game 1), 3 hits in 4 at-bats, 1 run, 3 RBIs (Game 2)
Ariana Fair: 3 hits in 3 at-bats, 3 runs, 1 walk (Game 2)
Mya Cribbs: 2 hits in 3 at-bats, 2 runs, 2 RBIs (Game 2)

How It Happened:

Game 1: Cruising to victory in a dominant 11-0 victory, the Cobras got the scoring started in the bottom of the first. After Fair reached on a walk and stole second base to break the Coker All-Time Stolen Bases record, Andrews brought her home on an RBI double to go up 1-0. The Cobras then decided to get on the board again in the bottom of the second, with Cheyenne Palmer scoring on a wild pitch and Bailee Gaskins bringing home Cribbs on an RBI double. Up 3-0 in the third, they had a huge inning while scoring five total runs capped off by a bases-clearing single by Lacey Hennessy to make it 8-0. A bases-clearing triple in the fourth by Brigman scored Gaskins and Cribbs, with Dakota Slack bringing home Brigman to make it 11-0. As Andrews and the stout Cobra defense had done all game long, they held the Broncos scoreless in the top of the fifth to secure the mercy-rule win in five innings.

Game 2: As the weather conditions worsened, the Cobras were met with a challenge in Game 2 that ended with a walk-off triple in dramatic fashion. After the first inning, the Cobras looked to have the same kind of contest as the first game, scoring two runs to take a 2-0 lead. Fair scored on a wild pitch followed by Gaskins coming home on an unearned run to take us into the second inning. Fayetteville State had a response, taking a 3-2 lead after the top of the second. The Cobras then tied it in the bottom of that inning with a Cribbs sac fly that scored Callie Schmidt, then took a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the third with a Slack sac fly that scored Palmer. Things looked down after a five-run top of the fourth inning by the Broncos had them up 8-4, but the Cobras scored just as many in the bottom of that inning to take the lead back at 9-8. Before the fifth inning started, it was decided that it would be the final inning of play due to the conditions worsening at Saleeby-Stokes Field. With that in mind, it became a do-or-die inning in the bottom of the fifth for the Cobras, as Fayetteville State had scored three runs in the top of the inning to take an 11-9 lead. Then, with two runners in scoring position, Cribbs came up clutch with an RBI single that scored Hennessy and made it 11-10. Cribbs and Fair advanced to second and third on the throw, respectively, and brought up the freshman in Brigman to bat. With the game on the line, she delivered a bases-clearing triple to score the winning run and walk off this game in dramatic fashion!

Notables

• As stated previously, Ari Fair recorded her record-breaking steal in the first game today to break the Coker All-Time Stolen Base record! She recorded one in each game today to push her mark to 55 total, a number that will continue to grow throughout this season.
• Payton Brigman, the freshman who had herself a day today, is batting .474 with 13 RBIs to start the season. Today she went a combined 5-7 from the plate with 3 runs and 6 RBIs.

Up Next

The Cobras will remain at home for their next contest as they host Augusta in a doubleheader on Saturday at Saleeby-Stokes Field. First pitch for Game 1 is scheduled for 2:00 PM ET.