WILMINGTON, N.C. — Left-handed starter
Andrew Vaccacio had another strong outing on the mound for Appalachian State, but UNCW limited the Mountaineers to two hits in a 2-0 win Friday at Brooks Field.
The Seahawks scored an unearned run on a two-out error in the third inning and added another run in the fourth to gain some separation from App State, which recorded its first hit on
Joel McDaniel's sixth-inning single. He opened the ninth inning with another single, but UNCW reliever Clark Cota retired the next three batters for the Mountaineers (1-3).
Helped by a few solid plays at shortstop from McDaniel, App State allowed only four hits against an offense that was averaging 8.3 per game. The Seahawks, picked as the preseason favorite in the CAA, were only three days removed from a 5-4 upset of No. 6 North Carolina.
Vaccacio struck out seven batters and allowed the one earned run on four hits through six innings before giving way to reliever
Reed Howell, who struck out the first four batters he faced and finished with five strikeouts in two scoreless innings.
"They were fantastic," App State head coach
Kermit Smith said. "I thought we had some really good defensive plays, specifically at shortstop, and we just faced a couple of good arms. The ball didn't bounce our way tonight."
App State's starting pitchers had a 2.93 ERA in the season-opening series at UNCG, which was moving forward from an NCAA Regional appearance in 2017. Vaccacio allowed three earned runs and pitched into the seventh inning with a 3-2 lead in his season-opening start against the Spartans.
He was sharp again Friday, but UNCW (4-1) took advantage of a defensive miscue to claim a 1-0 lead in the third inning. Runners were on second and first when Vaccacio induced a two-out grounder, and the Mountaineers misplayed the exchange to get the force out at second base, allowing Ryan Jeffers to race home.
The Seahawks increased their lead with a single, sacrifice bunt and Noah Bridges' run-scoring single to right field in the fourth inning.
App State left six runners on base in the game, as it put together a fifth-inning threat when
Beau Myers was hit by a pitch with one out, CJ Brown stole second after reaching on a fielder's choice and
Calev Grubbs drew a two-out walk. UNCW starter Alex Royalty induced a flyout, ending his day with five strikeouts, three walks and no hits allowed in five innings. Austin Easter relieved Royalty and posted six strikeouts in three innings.
"Their pitching deserves a lot of credit," Smith said. "Their pitchers did a very good job tonight, and so did ours. It was a good baseball game."
The Mountaineers and Seahawks are scheduled to resume their series Saturday at 2 p.m., and
Colin Schmid is App State's probable starter on the mound.
