High Point and Coastal Carolina combined for 27 runs and 31 hits, and the Chanticleers held off the Panthers for a 15-12 victory Friday night in a wild Big South series opener at Watson Stadium in Conway, S.C.

Seby Renta and Corey Stang each homered for the Panthers, who outhit the Chants by a 17-14 count but came up short in the run column.

Steven Carter picked up his tenth win of the season (10-2) for the Chants. 
Matt Kniginyzky (4-7) took the loss for HPU.

Rey Rojas tallied his Big South-leading 33rd stolen base in the seventh inning.

The Panthers (11-42, 4-18 Big South) jumped out to a 4-0 lead with three in the first and one in the second off Carter. Matt Keever reached on a one-out single, stole second and scored on a base hit by Chris Ramirez. Renta then cleared the bases with his fourth homer of the year.

In the second, HPU took a 4-0 lead after Anthony Bell walked, stole second and came around on a Keever single.

But the Chants (34-20) exploded for five runs in the bottom of the second to take a 5-4 lead. CCU scored all five of its runs in the second with two outs, beginning when Chris Todd got the first of five hits on the night, a double which scored Derek Martin. Later in the inning, Jon Foisy's two-run double plated Todd and Jeremiah Grove.

The Panthers tied things back up when Matt Richardson singled through the infield to score Chris Draska in the top of the third for a 5-5 tie.

The deadlock would be short-lived, as CCU scored four times in the bottom of the frame for a 9-5 advantage. Brett Grandstrand's two-run single was the biggest blow.

Every time High Point built a rally, Coastal would answer. The Panthers scored a single run in the fifth when Bell drew a bases-loaded walk to score Renta, but the Chants came back with four in the bottom of the inning for a 13-6 cushion.

An RBI single by Stang and a two-run double by Ken Keesee in the sixth pulled HPU within 13-9 before the Chants got a single tally in the bottom of the frame.

In the top of the seventh, Renta singled home Rojas before Stang's third homer of the year, a two-run shot that scored Renta to get HPU within 14-12. Coastal's Brett Gordon helped the Chants add an insurance run in the bottom of the inning when he singled in Mike Costanzo.

Keever and Josh Cotten had three hits apiece for the Panthers. Stang and Renta each drove in three runs. For Coastal, Grandstrand had four RBI and belted his seventh home run of the year, while Todd went 5-for-5 at the plate with three runs scored and two RBI.

The Chants took advantage of five Panther errors.

The teams play again at 2:00 pm Saturday (Bob Helman vs. Jake Hurry) and 1:00 pm Sunday (Phil Leake vs. Mike Costanzo).

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