The High Point baseball team put up a stiff challenge in both games of their doubleheader against 19th-ranked Coastal Carolina on Saturday afternoon but came up short as CCU earned a sweep of the twinbill, 6-5 and 4-1, at Coy O. Williard Sr. Stadium.

With the losses, the Panthers fell to 19-20 overall and 6-6 in Big South Conference action. Coastal Carolina snapped a four-game losing skid with the victories improving to 30-7 and 8-1.

For the second straight game, Coastal scored two runs in the first. David Sappelt led off the game with a triple to center. He scored on a double by Dom Duggan. Chris Raber hit a two-out single to left that scored Duggan for the 2-0 lead.

High Point answered with two unearned runs in the bottom of the first. Robby Kuzdale reached on an error by sophomore Tyler Bortnick. He went to third on a single by Jeff Cowan that hopped away from CCU second baseman Ricky Grice. Kuzdale scored on a double from Randy Schwartz and Cowan was brought home on a groundout by Billy Alvino.

With one out in the second, Grice singled up the middle. He would trot home on Sappelt's sixth home run of the season. Duggan then doubled down the left field line and scored on an opposite field single by Tommy Baldridge that made it 5-2 in favor of Coastal. The Chants added a run in the third as Grice doubled in the left field gap, scoring Derek Martin.

Schwartz cut into the HPU deficit blasting his eighth homer of the year in the fourth to make the score 6-3.

The Panthers made it interesting in the ninth. Alvino was hit by a pitch to open the inning. David Anderson came in and struck out pinch hitter J Williams. Matt Gantner and Pablo Rosario hit back-to-back singles to load the bases and an Alfie Wheeler walk made it 6-4. Kuzdale's sacrifice fly cut the lead to one, but Cowan's sharp grounder to third was snagged by Martin, who threw to Adam Vrable stranding the tying run for HPU.

For High Point, Schwartz and Rosario had two hits apiece to lead the offense. CCU's Sappelt, went 4-for-5 at the plate, completing the cycle with a double in the top of the fourth and a single to left in the sixth. Duggan, Baldridge, Raber and Grice each had two hits apiece for Coastal.

Bobby Gagg improved to 7-1 on the year for CCU, going eight-plus innings and giving up two earned runs while striking out five and allowing no walks. Brandon Moore took the loss, giving up 10 hits and six runs in three innings. HPU's Zach Scott (3.0 IP), RJ Chlebnikow (0.2 IP) and Jamie Serber (2.1 IP) pitched six scoreless innings of relief to give the Panthers a chance for the win.

Coastal scored a run in the first to start game two. Sappelt continued his hot day by driving a single to right. Duggan had his 18th sacrifice of the season to move Sappelt to second, who would then score on a single from Matt Rademacher. CCU starter John Mariotti pitched out of jams in the second and third innings setting up Coastal to take advantage in the fourth.

Dock Doyle led off with a single and moved to second on a Maritn sacrifice. A groundout put Doyle on third and Vrable brought him in with a single to left. Sappelt then doubled to the right field gap scoring Vrable from first to up the Coastal lead to 3-0.

In the seventh, High Point loaded the bases on a single by Alvino, a walk to Williams and an infield single by Alfie Wheeler, but Coastal reliever Joey Haug induced Kuzdale into a fly out to end the threat.

High Point finally scored a run in the eighth, but Coastal stemmed the tide thanks to a runner's interference play. Cowan opened the inning with a single off CCU's Pete Andrelczyk. He went to third on a double by Gantner. Schwartz then brought in a run with a single up the middle. Anderson came in and got Alvino to ground to third. Schwartz was forced out at second and Alvino was called out on a runner's interference at second, forcing Gantner, who had scored on the play, to go back to third. Anderson then got Williams to groundout keeping it 3-1 Chants advantage going into the ninth.
Coastal added an insurance run in the ninth when Bortnick's infield single scored Baldridge. Anderson pitched a perfect ninth for his second save of the day and eighth on the year.

Mariotti went to 4-0 on the year, going six innings and allowing four hits and striking out three. Bubba O'Donnell (3-4) took the loss for High Point giving up seven hits and three runs in six innings.  Cowan paced the Panthers at the plate with two hits.

HPU closes their current home stand on Tuesday at 7 p.m. versus Triad-rival Wake Forest. An official stadium dedication ceremony will be held prior to the start of the contest.