BUIES CREEK, N.C. — Rookie left-hander Ryan Chasse registered his first-career complete game to pace Campbell in a 4-1 win over Charleston Southern Sunday afternoon at Jim Perry Stadium.
The win moved Campbell to 27-16 overall and 15-5 in Big South play to remain in first place in the Big South standings, while Charleston Southern dropped its 30th game of the season to fall to 17-30, 7-14 in league action.
The Fighting Camels are 1.5 games ahead of Winthrop and Radford in the conference standings who both own a 14-7 record in conference play.
Chasse (6-2) allowed just three hits in nine innings, striking out eight with no walks. The Middle Creek High School product took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and gave up just one extra-base hit, a solo home run in the ninth.
The two-time Big South Freshman of the Week needed just 113 pitches to collect his sixth overall victory and move his conference record to 4-0. The earned run lowered his conference earned run average to 1.53, which is the lowest among all Big South starters. Additionally, four of Chasse’s eight strikeouts were looking, moving his season total to 22, the second most looking K’s in the league.
Charleston Southern starter Cody Maw (2-5) took the loss, allowing four earned runs on six hits over his six innings on the mound.
Six different Camels – Matthew Barefoot, Koby Collins, Grant Harris, Zach Minnick, Spencer Packard and Collin Wolf – had hits in the win, while both Wolf and Harris collected doubles. Harris’ two-bagger was his third of the weekend as he finished the series 4-for-7.
With one gone in the bottom of the second, Wolf doubled into left-center field for his fourth hit of the weekend. Just three pitches later, Collins scored Wolf from second on an RBI single through the left side. Collins advanced to second on the throw home and then scored on Minnick’s RBI single into centerfield.
Both teams went scoreless over the next three and a half innings until Barefoot led off the bottom of the sixth with a single into left field; he stole second two pitches later. Hrica drew a walk and then he and Barefoot executed a double steal to put a pair of Camels in scoring position with no outs on the board.
With the infield in, Gimenez hit a sharp groundball to the third baseman for a groundout, but, one batter later, Packard drove in Barefoot and Hrica on a two-run single to push the Camels ahead by four, 4-0.
Chasse got the first two outs in the seventh, but a bloop single into shallow center field earned Charleston Southern its first hit of the ballgame. The rookie got a strikeout to end the frame, and in the eighth, allowed just a two-out single before giving up a two-out, solo home run to Ryan Stoudemire in the top of the ninth.
Up next, the Camels will travel to Raleigh Tuesday for a rematch with nationally ranked N.C. State. First pitch at Doak Field at Dail Park is scheduled for 6 p.m.
