No. 11 ECU downs Columbia to complete series sweep

GREENVILLE, N.C. – No. 11 East Carolina raced out to a sizable advantage Sunday afternoon before completing a series sweep of Columbia by an 8-6 margin inside Lewis Field at Clark-LeClair Stadium.

The Pirates (14-4) registered a series sweep for the second-straight weekend and the third time this campaign while extending their current winning streak to seven games. ECU also continued to defend home turf, improving to 9-1 at the friendly confines.

Justin Wilcoxen put the wraps on a solid week at the dish, going 3-for-4 with a run scored and four RBI. Jacob Jenkins-Cowart and Jacob Starling also contributed a pair of hits each and combined for three runs scored. Sam Miller paced the Lions (3-11) with a trio of base knocks to go along with a three-RBI performance by Miles Blackwell.

Danny Beal (2-1) earned the victory in relief, tossing 2.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts and a walk. Griffin Palfrey (0-2) was saddled with the loss, though he completed just 0.1 frames before exiting the contest with an injury.

Ryley Johnson put the offensive gears in motion in the bottom of the first, drawing a leadoff walk. After a pair of fielder’s choice plays left Jenkins-Cowart at first with two outs, Starling blistered a 2-0 pitch to the wall for an RBI double and a 1-0 Pirate advantage.

With one away in the home half of the second and Wilcoxen on first via a leadoff single, Dixon Williams laced a double to right field that resulted in a pair of runners in scoring position. However, nothing crossed the plate after a force out at home and a liner to third.

East Carolina established some breathing room in the third as Jenkins-Cowart and Starling singled consecutively and moved into scoring position thanks to a Ryan McCrystal sacrifice bunt. Luke Nowak then cashed in with an RBI single and Wilcoxen ripped an 0-1 offering right through the middle to score both Starling and Nowak to make it 4-0. Jack Cooper put the visitors on the board with a solo home run in the top of the fourth, but Johnson answered with a long ball of his own, working a full count and drilling one off the scoreboard in right-center to leave the Pirates ahead 5-1.

McCrystal was able to reach on an error to begin the home half of the fifth and eventually scored when Wilcoxen went the opposite way, launching one over the wall in left field to stretch the ECU lead to 7-1. Columbia would plate five late runs in the eighth and ninth frames while Carter Cunningham rounded out the Pirates’ offensive output with an RBI single in the eighth that extended his hitting streak to 18 games.

• East Carolina improved to 4-1 in its all-time series with Columbia.
• The Pirates have now outscored their opponents 49-18 in the seventh and eighth innings this season.
• Cunningham’s 18-game hitting streak is the longest for an ECU player since Connor Norby put together a 20-game stretch during the 2021 campaign. Cunningham has recorded a base knock in every outing this year.
• East Carolina is 5-4 in games decided by two runs or less in 2024.
• The Pirates put seven leadoff batters on base and were 3-for-8 (.375) with runners in scoring position.

Up Next: ECU makes the trip to Elon Tuesday afternoon for a non-conference midweek showdown with the Phoenix. First pitch at Latham Park is slated for 4 p.m.

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