Softball On SI

Who Is Abby Henderson? Coastal Carolina Pitcher Shuts Down No. 15 Arizona

The right-hander improved to 1-2 on the season.
Maren Angus-Coombs|
Abby Henderson led Coastal Carolina to an upset of No. 15 Arizona in Tucson on Friday.
Abby Henderson led Coastal Carolina to an upset of No. 15 Arizona in Tucson on Friday. | CCU Athletics

Abby Hendeson had only appeared in two games for Coastal Carolina this season when she stepped into the circle at Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium in Tucson, Ariz., on Friday night.

Rather than be intimidated by the No. 15 Arizona Wildcats, the junior pitcher delivered a complete-game gem.

Henderson held the Wildcats to just four hits, and the Chanticleers rolled to a 6-2 win, marking the program's 10th-ranked win in program history.

The right-hander navigated the Arizona lineup, only striking out one and walking four, but she induced 14 groundouts and six flyouts.

Henderson had the powerful Wildcat offense guessing for all seven innings.

“She was kind of keeping us guessing a little bit with her,” said senior right fielder Grace Jenkins to Kim Doss of Arizona Desert Swarm. “She’s coming in and out, both righties and lefties, and she had that off-speed.”

Henderson has never been known to be a strikeout pitcher while at Coastal Carolina. Before Friday's game, she had just 95 career strikeouts across 149.0 innings. For the season, she has five strikeouts in 13.0 innings.

However, her three appearances have all been against Power 4 programs. Before Arizona, she pitched 2.2 innings against Virginia and 3.1 against North Carolina.

As a sophomore, Henderson was the No. 2 pitcher on the Chanticleer staff. She recorded 70 strikeouts, a 3.96 ERA on the season, and a 10–6–1 win–loss–save record. During a nine-game stretch, she didn't allow a single run. 

As a freshman, Henderson appeared in 18 games and made eight starts. She had a 5.35 ERA across 36.2 innings.

How the Upset Happened

Before Arizona could catch its breath, the Chanticleers had a 5-0 lead, scoring all of them in the top of the third inning.

With the bases loaded, Brie Normandin ripped a double down the right-field line to clear the bases and give Coastal a 3-0 lead.

Kelsey Sawvell added to the lead with an RBI single, and Moira Baxter drove in the fifth run with another single.

Arizona scored twice in the bottom of the fourth, but Coastal got one run back in the sixth when McKennah Metzger blooped an RBI single into center field to score pinch runner Emma Skovran from third base.

The Wildcats tried to rally in the seventh, putting two runners on with two outs. But Serenti Trice ended the game when she was thrown out at first base.

The two teams will meet again on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. MST. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

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Maren Angus-Coombs
MAREN ANGUS-COOMBS

Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. She has been covering college softball since 2016 for various outlets including Softball America, ESPNW and Hurrdat Sports. She is currently the managing editor of Softball On SI and also serves as an analyst for Nebraska softball games on Nebraska Public Media and B1G+.

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