UConn baseball falls to Coastal Carolina in final game of Baseball at the Beach

UConn baseball fought hard, but a flurry of offense in the latter innings wasn’t enough to overcome an eight-run deficit as the Huskies lost 12-10 to Coastal Carolina in the final game of the Baseball at the Beach Tournament.

UConn’s pitching staff, which was depleted after a full weekend’s worth of games, just couldn’t string together enough outs in the early innings. As a result, Coastal Carolina’s offense exploded.

The Huskies allowed at least one run in each of the first five innings and gave up a total of 12 runs during that stretch. The Chanticleers scored five times via the long ball. Deputy catcher Tanner Garrison went 3-for-3 with two homers, three runs, a single, and a walk. By the time the fifth inning came to an end, it was looking like a final day blowout.

UConn mustered up its fair share of offense at the beginning of this marathon game, however. Leadoff man Zach Bushling had a dream day at the plate, going 2-for-2 with two home runs, both of which were hammered over the right field fence.

It was 12-4 in the seventh inning when the Huskies’ bats came to life in earnest. After a weekend full of solo shots, Reggie Crawford destroyed a hanging breaking ball to right field for a three-run shot that brought UConn within five. It was Crawford’s fifth home run of the season as he continues his torrid pace. Then in the eighth, the freshman phenom brought the Huskies even closer with a bases-clearing double to the fence that made it 12-10.

Meanwhile, out of all the arms that UConn threw at a stacked Coastal Carolina lineup, the last three ended up having the biggest impact. Freshman Sam Favieri, transfer Kenny Campbell, and Kenny Haus combined for three innings of scoreless ball against a tough Coastal Carolina lineup. Campbell’s appearance was his first in 1,066 days after suffering a torn UCL in the 2018 offseason.

UConn would bring the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth, but they were unable to scratch it home against Coastal’s closer Alaska Abney.

It won’t get any easier for UConn in the coming week, as they fly to Lubbock on Friday to take on No. 9 Texas Tech.