HARTSVILLE, S.C. - The Anderson University baseball rallied to gain a late lead, but
Coker's Tony Nolan ripped a double into the left-center field gap in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Cobras an 8-7 win past the Trojans Sunday afternoon at Tom J. New Field.

The Trojans struck first, when senior catcher Brett Scarberry laced a one-out triple down the right-field line and crossed the plate on sophomore Josh Hickman's single back up the middle.

But the lead was short-lived, as Coker countered with six runs over the next three innings.

Trailing by five, at 6-1, after four innings, the Trojans rallied with three in the sixth and one in the seventh to narrow the gap to just one run, then tallied two in the eighth to claim the lead, 7-6, for the first time in the game.

Scarberry ignited the three-run sixth with his second extra-base hit of the game, a double down the left-field line. Hickman was hit by a pitch to put two runners on and senior Jonathan Romano ripped a triple into right-center, scoring both Scarberry and Hickman. Shortstop Thomas Padro brought Romano across with a one-out bouncer to second.

The seventh frame saw Erick Sanderson lead off with a triple to right and senior Ryan Kirkland's single plated Sanderson.

Anderson capitalized on Coker's defensive miscues in the eighth to score two runs with just a single on the board. Freshman Brett Cash lead off with a single and moved into scoring position when Padro reached base after being hit by a pitch. Both runners moved up on a passed ball and Cash scored his third run of the season on another passed ball. One out later Padro crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly off the Sanderson's bat, giving AU a 7-6 lead.

But Coker's Fico Kondla led off the ninth wiith a double down the left field line and scored a batter later off an RBI single by Nathan Wilson to even the score at 7-7. Wilson advanced to second on a failed pick-off attempt, setting up Nolan's heroics.

Matt Bowman (2-0) picked up his second win in relief with an inning and a third of work, allowing just one hit.

Riley McDermott absorbed the loss for the Trojans, surrendering two runs off three hits in 1 2/3 innings of work.

Scarberry finished 3-for-4, with a double and a triple and score twice. The Sunrise, Fla. native has now hit safely in all six games he's started and is hitting a team-best .609 on the season. Kirkland was 2-for-4 on the afternoon with a walk and Hickman was 1-for-3 with a walk.

Anderson will get back on the diamond on Tuesday, as the Trojans visit North Greenville for a 2 p.m. contest.