CONWAY, S.C. – Canyon McWilliams' at bat in the ninth inning is the stuff stories are made of. Unfortunately for Little Rock, the story didn't have a Cinderella ending.
Representing the tying run as the Trojans trailed by two McWilliams battled a full count, fouling multiple pitches off before he sent the 11
th pitch of the at bat well past the right center fence at Spring Brooks Stadium in Conway Saturday afternoon, as Little Rock turned a five-run ninth inning deficit into a 6-6 tie ballgame.
However, Little Rock (21-21, 9-13 Sun Belt) was not able to fulfill a true story book ending as Coastal Carolina (28-15-1, 15-7-1 Sun Belt) pulled out a 9-6 (10 inning) decision after Graham Brown hit a three-run home run to end the game.
The heartbreaking loss dashed Little Rock's hopes of being the first team between the Trojans and Chanticleers to win a road game in the eight-game series between the two programs. Instead, home field advantage continued to reign supreme.
McWilliams ability to send the game to extra innings came as
Jorden Hussein, who led the Trojans with a 5-for-6 performance, drove in two runs on a double down the left field line earlier in the inning. Hussein came to the plate with the bases loaded and no outs as
Jaxson Anderson and
Andrew Pickering sandwiched singles around
Jake Wright's four-pitch walk to set the stage for a comeback.
Little Rock wouldn't be able to break the tie but did ride a wave of confidence into the bottom of the ninth after turning the deficit into a ballgame that was tied, and rode that wave of confidence into forcing three straight outs and extra innings.
The Trojans put two on in the 10
th as Hussein notched his third double of the game followed by Eldirige Figueroa getting hit by a pitch, all with two outs, before a strikeout ended the threat. That sent things into the bottom of the 10
th as the Chanticleers used a walk, sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk design to force a double play didn't pan out after Brown's home run ended the game.
Jacob Weatherly, who was masterful in the ninth, was charged with the loss after allowing three runs on one hit in 1.1 innings, walking two and striking out one. Matthew Potok (3-0) was credited with the in after allowing just one hit and striking out one in on inning of work.
Little Rock struck first in the game as Figueroa hit a solo home run in the first but committed an error that led to a tying run in the bottom half of the inning. Coastal added one more run and took the lead in the fourth on a solo home run by Dale Thomas then Tyler Johnson hit a two-run home run in the fifth to give the Chants a 4-1 advantage.
Coastal Carolina added two more run in the sixth on an RBI single by Matt McDermott followed by an RBI sacrifice bunt by Austin White.
McWilliams finished the day 1-for-4 with a while while
Andrew Pickering was 2-for-5 with a run scored.
The Trojans look to end the series on a high note Sunday when the teams battle in the series finale. First pitch is scheduled for Noon CT/1 p.m. ET with the game airing live on ESPN+.
For the latest information on Little Rock Baseball, make sure to check out
LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockBSB on
Facebook,
Instagram and
Twitter.
Get the latest Trojan news – including the weekly Trojan Report – delivered to you direct to your inbox by
signing up for Little Rock Trojan E-News here.
#LittleRocksTeam
