Game 1 Boxscore (PDF) | Game 2 Boxscore (PDF)

CONWAY, S.C. – Eastern Illinois softball split a twinbill at Coastal Carolina on Monday (March 10) afternoon, as the Panthers clawed past the Chanticleers, 3-2, in the nightcap after previously dropping a tough 6-2 first game.

With the split, EIU moves to 16-7 on the season.

For the day, senior Brooke Owens and junior Hannah Cole both finished with identical 3-for-5 plate (.600) performances, as Owens led all Panthers with two RBI, a sac bunt, a double, four total bases, and a .800 slug %.

Sophomore Jennette Isaac and senior Carly Willert secured a pair of hits in the two game series, while fellow senior Kaylie Pruett scampered for a stolen base.

The senior pitching duo of Stephanie Maday and Hanna Mennenga earned a respective win and loss on the day, as Maday improved to 6-3 with the second game victory. Mennenga dropped to 9-2 overall following her tough first game defeat.

In the nightcap victory over the Coastal Carolina (15-6), the Panthers jumped to the early 3-0 lead following two full innings of action.

In the opening frame, Owens delivered a fielder's choice sac bunt RBI, plating Isaac in the process. Senior Reynae Hutchinson followed with her own RBI single to left field to score Willert.

Owens would add her second RBI of the game in the second inning as her base hit helped classmate Ashleigh Westover scamper for the eventual game-winning score.

The host Chanticleers would threaten after the host squad scored a pair of runs in the sixth inning, but Maday would earn the win in the circle thanks to fanning three CCU batters, while allowing two walks but being tagged with only one earned run. She held the home team bats to a low .160 average as CCU stranded five base runners.

In the opening contest, the Panthers would again jump out to the early advantage as EIU scored in the first inning thanks to an RBI single by Cole to score Willert.

CCU would counter in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-run homer, but Eastern would tie the score thanks to newcomer Haylee Beck's scampered for her first official home run via inside-the-park fashion.

Unfortunately the Chanticleers would again use the long ball in the third inning, blowing the game open with a three-run blast to left field. An untimely Panther error in the fifth frame would allow CCU to plate a run for the final margin of victory.

Mennenga was tabbed for the loss as she tied the Chanticleer pitcher with four strikeouts and one walk, with five of the six CCU runs earned, yet she did end up stranding 10 home base runners, as compared to three for the Panthers.

For the series, Eastern actually led Coastal Carolina in batting (.264-to-.240), hits (14-to-12), and walks (five-to-three), while the Chanticleers out-paced EIU in runs (eight-to-five), RBI (six-to-five), strikeouts thrown (11-to-seven), and stolen bases (three-to-one).

Panthers are set to finish up their Carolina spring break trip with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at East Carolina tomorrow afternoon.

... for more info, contact Bart Rettberg, Asst. SID