Back-to-Back Big Innings Not Enough for Little Rock Sunday

CONWAY, S.C. – Jake Wright hit a grand slam and Little Rock posted back-to-back big innings midway through Sunday's series finale at Coastal Carolina but it wouldn't be enough to hold off the host Chanticleers in a 19-9 (7 inning) loss Sunday.
 
Wright went 1-for-3 at the plate with four RBIs off his fifth-inning grand slam while Canyon McWilliams was 2-for-3 with a walk. The grand slam by Wright – his sixth home run of the season – gave Little Rock (21-22, 9-14 Sun Belt) its largest lead of the game and the series but Coastal Carolina (29-15-1, 16-7-1 Sun Belt) responded with eight runs in the bottom half of the inning and eight more runs over the next two innings to secure the win. Only half of the fifth-inning runs for the Chanticleers were earned.
 
Sawyer Smallwood (5-4) was charged with the loss after allowing four runs (one earned) on two hits in 0.2 innings. Michael Quevedo, making his first career start, allowed five runs on five hits and struck out three in 4.0 innings on the mound.
 
Riley Eikhoff (4-0) was credited with the win after allowing four runs on three hits in 1.0 inning on the mound while Elliot Carney (3) was awarded the save as he kept the Trojans hitless over the final two innings while walking two and striking out four. Little Rock chased Coastal starter Nick Parker after tagging him for five runs on four hits in 4.0 innings while drawing three walks.
 
For the second straight game, the Trojans used a first inning solo home run to jump on the board first. This time it came off the bat of Tyler Williams as he sent the first pitch of his two-out at bat over the left center wall. Coastal would respond with a three-run double in the third from Tyler Johnson as part of a five-RBI game for the Chanticleer designated hitter.
 
The Trojans responded with crooked numbers in the fourth and fifth innings. In the fourth, McWilliams scored on a Parker wild pitch before Andrew Pickering pushed a run across with a sac fly to left. Two batters later, Eldrige Figueroa laced a single up the middle to score Wright and Jaxson Anderson.
 
Then in the fifth, McWilliams' leadoff single kept the Trojan offensive momentum going. Nate Lyons drew a one-out walk and Anderson's single up the middle loaded the bases, cuing up Wright's shot to left center.
 
However, Coastal would respond with four runs in the fifth with an error extending the inning and allowing four more runs to score. The Chanticleers manufactured three runs on a fielder's choice and back-to-back RBI singles in the sixth before ending the game on the league-mandated run rule in the seventh after scoring five runs on a pair of sacrifice flies, a wild pitch and a two-run double. The Chants were led by Graham Brown's 3-for-4 performance at the plate as his two RBIs scored a pair of unearned runs on a home run to left it the fifth.
 
Little Rock returns home to host Georgia Southern next weekend in the Trojans' final home games of the season as well as the final Sun Belt series to be played at Gary Hogan Field. The series gets underway on Friday, May 13 with a 6 p.m. CT first pitch.
 
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.
 
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