CHAMPIONS! Baseball Takes Down Southern Miss, 7-5, For SBC Tournament Crown
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Top-seeded Coastal Carolina captured its third Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship — and first since 2019 — with a 7–5 win over No. 2 seed Southern Miss on Sunday afternoon at Riverwalk Stadium.
The Chanticleers (48–11) extended their win streak to 18 games behind a five-run fifth inning and clutch performances up and down the lineup while snapping the Golden Eagles’ 18-game streak. Caden Bodine was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player after going 2-for-4 with a double and triple in the final. He finished the tournament hitting .545.
Coastal opened the scoring in the first and added another run in the second on an RBI single from Wells Sykes. Southern Miss briefly took a 3–2 lead in the fourth, but Coastal responded with its biggest inning of the day, capitalizing on four hits and a Southern Miss error.
Sykes drove in three runs, including a two-run single in the fifth, while Walker Mitchell and Colby Thorndyke each contributed RBI hits in the inning. Coastal’s bullpen combined for 5.2 innings of relief, with Darin Horn (5–1) earning the win and Ryan Lynch locking down his seventh save.
Southern Miss (44–14) scored solo runs in the second, fourth, sixth and eighth, including home runs by Joey Urban and Ben Higdon. Despite outhitting the Chants 10–9, the Golden Eagles left 13 runners on base.
The win marks Coastal Carolina’s 17th all-time conference tournament title and an automatic berth to the NCAA postseason.
NOTEBOOK
MVP Bodine Leads All-Tournament Picks: Caden Bodine, who hit .545 (6-for-11) with two extra-base hits and nine total bases during the tournament, was named the Sun Belt Championship Most Outstanding Player. Blake Barthol, Cameron Flukey, and Wells Sykes joined him on the All-Tournament Team.
Clutch Fifth Inning: Coastal’s five-run fifth turned a 3–2 deficit into a 7–3 lead. Mitchell tied the game with an RBI single, and Thorndyke’s single up the middle plated the go-ahead run. Sykes followed with a two-run single, giving Coastal a cushion it would not relinquish.
Strong Relief Effort: Luke Jones made the start for CCU, but the bullpen carried the load. Horn, Hayden Johnson, Dominick Carbone, and Lynch combined to scatter four hits over the final 5.2 innings. Lynch pitched the ninth for his second save of the tournament and seventh of the year.
Flashing the Leather: The Chanticleers played error-free baseball in the title game and committed just one error in four tournament games. Coastal turned four double plays during the tournament and led all teams with a .993 fielding percentage.
Sykes Delivers in Title Game: Center fielder Wells Sykes went 2-for-4 with three RBI, including a two-out, two-run single in the fifth. Sykes hit .462 in the tournament and also stole three bases.
Pitching Consistency: CCU pitchers finished the tournament with a 2.25 team ERA and held opponents to a .237 batting average over 36 innings. Starters Flukey, Eikhoff, and Morrison each delivered quality outings in the earlier rounds.
Up Next: The Chanticleers will await their NCAA Regional assignment, set to be announced Monday. With 48 wins and a Sun Belt title, CCU remains in strong contention for a top-eight national seed.
Reserve Your Regional Tickets Today: Coastal Carolina fans can reserve standing room or boardwalk seats at Springs Brooks Stadium for the NCAA Regional round, should the Chanticleers be selected as one of 16 host sites. Reserved seating is sold out. Lock in your seats now!
