Longball Leads CofC to Series Finale Win over Northeastern

BOSTON, Mass. - College of Charleston hit four home runs Saturday morning and Connor Campbell tossed six strong innings in a 9-2 rain-shortened win over Northeastern to close the regular season.

Tanner Steffy went deep to start the scoring and had three extra-base hits on the day, Cole Mathis sent two balls over the fence and Trotter Harlan joined the part on his 10th homer of the season.

Steffy’s three-run blast in the first was all the run support Campbell needed as the senior southpaw tossed a complete game for the second time over his final three starts. The Mason Neck, Virginia, native struck out a season-high 7 Northeaster hitters and allowed just two runs on five hits for his fourth win.

Leading Off

Final Score: Charleston 9, Northeastern 2

Location: Friedman Diamond | Boston, Mass.

Records: Charleston (34-20, 18-12 CAA), Northeastern (41-12, 20-10 CAA)

How It Happened

• Tanner Steffy hit a three-run first-inning home run to the Charleston bullpen in left center, giving Charleston a 3-0 lead they would never relinquish.

• Cole Mathis hit a two-run shot in the second for a 6-1 lead followed by Trotter Harlan’s solo blast to go back-to-back and make it 7-1 Cougars through two innings.

• Mathis would go deep again, this time sending a ball onto the street beyond the fence in left center for a 9-1 lead in the fourth.

• Northeastern’s lone two runs in the game came on solo home runs, but Connor Campbell never allowed the Huskies’ offense to threaten a comeback attempt.

• Campbell tossed the full six innings striking out a season-high seven batters as the game was called in the top of the seventh due to weather in the New England area.

Notes

• Cole Mathis hit a pair of two-run home runs Saturday, the second time the sophomore two-way player has went deep twice in a game this season.

• Trotter Harlan hit his 10th home run of the season in a four-run second inning and moved over the 50 RBI mark on the solo blast.

• Tanner Steffy went 3-for-4 with a three-run shot to open the scoring in the first and a pair of doubles.

• Charleston hit four home runs on the day, the first time leaving the yard four times since April 14 at Monmouth.

• Mathis’ two homers made it three-straight weekends a Cougar had a multi-HR day with Harlan doing so at North Carolina A&T and home versus UNCW.

• Mathis and Harlan also went back-to-back in the fourth inning, the second time the Cougars have done so this season (April 7 vs. Hofstra). Harlan was also part of the last back-to-back jacks in April doing so with Jared Kirven.

• Connor Campbell tossed his second complete game in three starts to close the regular season striking out a season-best 7 Northeastern batters. Campbell became the first Cougar to throw a pair of complete games in CAA play since joining the league in 2014.

• The win moved Charleston to 10-3 on Saturdays this season, the second day of the week with double digit wins just one behind Friday.

Up Next

Charleston heads home for the 2023 CAA Tournament on their home field.

The six-team, double-elimination tournament gets underway on Wednesday, May 24 as fourth-seeded Charleston (34-20, 18-12 in CAA) faces #5 Delaware (29-27, 17-13 in CAA) at Noon, followed by #3 Northeastern (41-12, 20-10 in CAA) against #6 William & Mary (32-23, 15-15 in CAA) at 4 p.m.

All games of the CAA Baseball Championship will be streamed on FloBaseball.tv (FloSports.tv/caa).

For more information, including how to purchase tickets, hotel discounts and a visitor’s guide to Charleston, go to the CAA Championship Central page at caasports.com/baseball.

2023 CAA Baseball Championship

Ballpark at Patriots Point - Mt. Pleasant, S.C.

Wednesday, May 24

Game 1 - #4 Charleston vs. #5 Delaware - 12 p.m.

Game 2 - #3 Northeastern vs. #6 William & Mary - 4 p.m.

Thursday, May 25

Game 3 - Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 - 11 a.m.

Game 4 - #1 UNCW vs. Lowest-seeded Game 1/2 winner - 3 p.m.

Game 5 - #2 Elon vs. Highest-seeded Game 1/2 winner - 7 p.m.

Friday, May 26

Game 6 - Winner of Game 3 vs. Lowest-seeded Game 4/5 loser - 11 a.m.

Game 7 - Winner of Game 6 vs. Highest-seeded Game 4/5 loser - 3 p.m.