Coastal Carolina pulls regional upset; Wofford barely misses (2024)

CLEMSON— Coastal Carolina coach Gary Gilmore's last NCAA tournament got off to a fantastic start.

The No. 3-seeded Chanticleers blasted No. 2 seed Vanderbilt, 13-3, in the opening game of the Clemson regional on May 31 to set up a 5 p.m. matchup on June 1 with the winner of the Clemson-High Point game.

Gilmore led Coastal Carolina to a national title in 2016, but the Chants were very much a bubble team in his final season of a 35-year head-coaching career. Despite a 34-23 record, including a 16-14 mark and seventh-place finish in the Sun Belt, they were granted another postseason opportunity.

Coastal Carolina quickly took advantage, building an 8-0 lead in the first four frames. at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. That included five runs in the second inning.

Vanderbilt notched a solo homer in the sixth, but the Chants responded with a two-run blast from Sam Antonacci in the eighth.

Antonacci was one of four Coastal Carolina players with at least two runs batted in. Derek Bender and Zack Beach led the Chants with three RBIs apiece.

Coastal Carolina didn't play High Point, the Big South tourney champs, in the regular season. The Chants were supposed to play Clemson twice, but both games were rained out; they did, however, scrimmage in the fall.

"We spent time messin' with it, but it's not like playing," Gilmore said prior to Friday's tournament game. "You can read all the stuff on the piece of paper and watch video and all that stuff ... (but) at least I have way more familiarity with their personnel than we do with Vandy. We just haven't played."

LSU 4, Wofford 3

LSU’s Steven Milam homered twice, including the game winner in the bottom of the ninth inning, as No. 2 seed LSU fought off an upset bid from No. 3 Wofford in a 4-3 win at the Chapel Hill Regional.

Wando High School graduate Branton Little pitched five shutout innings for Wofford (41-18), allowing just two hits with three strikeouts as the Terriers took a 3-1 lead in the eighth.

LSU (40-21) tied it in the bottom of the eighth on home runs by ex-South Carolina player Michael Braswell and Jared Jones.