End of the Road: ECU’s Season Ends in Conway Regional Final Loss to Coastal Carolina
CONWAY, S.C. — The fight ran out. Not the heart, not the grit just the innings.
East Carolina’s 2025 season came to a close Monday night with a 1-0 loss to No. 1 seed Coastal Carolina, as the Pirates fell just two games short of a Super Regional trip. The defeat wraps up a 35-27 campaign that saw ECU make yet another deep postseason push, ending in a sixth straight regional final appearance.
A Pitching Duel for the Ages
Freshman Bradley Zayac gave the Pirates everything they could have hoped for. On the biggest stage of his young career, he went 7.1 innings, allowing just one earned run on four hits while striking out four and walking one.
“Zayac didn’t win the game, but hell, it was an unbelievable performance,” head coach Cliff Godwin said. “The future is bright for East Carolina.”
Coastal’s lone run came in the fourth and proved to be all it needed behind the efforts of starter Riley Eikhoff (7.1 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 5 K) and closer Dominick Carbone (1.2 IP, 3 K). It marked Coastal’s 21st consecutive win, punching their ticket to the Super Regionals.
Pirates Come Up Just Short
East Carolina had its chances to flip the game. The Pirates loaded the bases in the fifth, stranded a leadoff double in the sixth, and grounded into a double play with two on and one out in the seventh. In total, ECU left seven runners on base and went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
“Coastal was better than us this year,” Godwin said. “They deserve to move on. They’re really good on the mound, offensively and defensively. They can beat you in a lot of different ways.”
A Two-Week Fight to Remember
It wasn’t long ago that this season looked over. After a lackluster road series at South Florida, few gave the Pirates a shot to even make noise in the AAC Tournament.
“I told the guys this morning two weeks ago, when we played like garbage at South Florida, nobody in the country thought we had a chance,” Godwin said. “They came together and played really good baseball for two weeks.”
That run included an AAC Tournament championship, two wins over Florida, and a resilient showing in Conway that earned respect across the country.
Setting the Standard
With their 35th NCAA Tournament appearance, the Pirates once again proved their consistency as a national power. The sixth straight trip to a regional final is a feat very few programs can match.
“Just proud of the guys, man,” Godwin said. “When you put yourself in that situation having to come on the road and win, beat Florida twice, battle Coastal twice that’s what this program is about.”