WILMINGTON, N.C. – The William and Mary Tribe baseball team fell in the 2014 CAA Championship game 6-4 to No. 2-seed College of Charleston. The Tribe got the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth, but its comeback effort came up just short. The Tribe concludes season with a record of 34-22, while the Cougars improve to 41-17 overall.
Junior Michael Katz and sophomore Charley Gould finished the game 2-for-4. Junior Devin White finished the game with a pair of RBIs for the Green and Gold.
Charleston opened the game's scoring with a run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Nick Pappas doubled down the right field line, moving to third on a sacrifice bunt by Ryan Welke. The next batter, Ben Boykin singled through the right side, plating Pappas and making the score 1-0.
The Cougars added another run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Ben Butler belted a home run over the left field wall. Butler's third home run of the season gave the Cougars a 2-0 lead.
C of C added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Carl Wise started the inning with an infield single, moving to second on a single by Pappas. A sacrifice bunt moved the runners up 90 feet. A double by Boykin cleared the bases, giving the Cougars a 4-0 lead.
Charleston plated an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh inning. A lead off single from Champ Rowland, who advanced to second on a sac bunt, started the rally. After two outs, Wise singled through the left side, pushing the Cougars advantage to 5-0.
For the fifth-straight inning, the Cougars got a run in the bottom of the eighth inning. A double, by Pappas started the rally. He later moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Welke, his third of the day. Pappas came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Morgan Phillips, making the score 6-0.
William and Mary didn't quit and brought the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth inning. Katz started the rally with a single, moving to second on a walk to sophomore Ryan Hissey. A single from Gould loaded the bases. A Charleston error allowed for the first run of the game score for the Tribe. A groundout allowed for Hissey to come around to score for the Green and Gold. A double from White cleared the bases, cutting the lead to 6-4. Charleston regrouped to get the final out.
Charleston's Tyler Thornton was credited the win. He pitched eight shutout innings allowing four hits and having eight strikeouts. It was his sixth win of the season.
Junior Bryson Kauhaahaa made the start for the Tribe, pitching five innings. He allowed two runs on five hits, while picking up a career-high five strikeouts. Kauhaahaa was charged with his third loss of the season. Sophomore Joseph Gaouette pitched three innings allowing four runs on six hits.
Sophomores Josh Smith and Ryan Hissey along with freshman Nick Brown earned All-Tournament team honors for the Tribe.
The Tribe concludes the season with a 34-22 record. It was the third straight season that the Tribe had posted 30 wins. Stay tuned to TribeAthletics.com for all of your Tribe Baseball needs.
