Staff report

HARTSVILLE, S.C. — Coker edged Catawba’s baseball team 6-5 on Friday and had a chance to tie for first place with a doubleheader sweep on Saturday.

That didn’t happen.

The 14th-ranked Indians did the Saturday sweeping and eliminated Coker from the South Atlantic Conference race with 7-3 and 9-2 victories.

Coker dropped to third place. Now Catawba (34-12, 21-6) holds a three-game lead over second-place Wingate.

Wingate will play the final series of the regular season against the Indians at Newman Park this weekend, with a single game scheduled for Friday night, followed by a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday.

In the 6-5 loss, Coker beat Austin Fine (8-2). Cooper Bryson had a triple for the Indians. Logan Rogers and Ty Hubbard had doubles.

In the 7-3 win, Levi Perrell’s homer and Bo Rusher’s double were the key blows. They drove in three runs apiece. Payne Stolsworth (9-2) pitched into the seventh inning and struck out seven.

In the 9-2 victory in a seven-inning game, Dylan Driver and Sam Hunter homered. Cole Hales, Casey Gouge and Hayden Simmerson got the job done on the mound. Simmerson struck out six in three innings to finish off the Cobras,