CLEARWATER, FL — Cliff Godwin became the winningest coach in East Carolina history as the Pirates advanced to the American Athletic Conference semifinals with a 6-5 win over Charlotte on Thursday at BayCare Ballpark.

The 49ers (36-21) put the potential winning run on base in a 2-run ninth inning before ECU senior right-hander Jake Hunter recorded a game-ending strikeout.

The closing drama put the Pirates in the semis on Saturday and gave Godwin career victory No. 428 to surpass Dr. Gary Overton, who recruited him to ECU.

The Pirates (31-25) will meet the winner of an elimination game on Friday between South Florida and the 49ers in the semifinals on Saturday at approximately 12:30 p.m.

A 3-run homer by Blake Martin in the second gave Charlotte a 3-2 lead.

“I told them in the pregame, we’re not going to go through this tournament and not get behind,” Godwin said on the ECU radio network. “You’ve got to be able to take a punch. We really haven’t done a good job of that this year.

“When the momentum has swung to another team’s dugout, sometimes we’ve just kind of faded. We didn’t fade. We just kept hanging in there.”

John Collins had a score-tying RBI single in the fifth. Walker Barron hit a 2-run homer to left in the sixth for a 5-3 ECU lead.

A bases-loaded walk to Austin Irby in the seventh extended the margin to 6-3.

Brad Pruett (5-5) pitched five hitless innings for the Pirates in relief of starter Lance Williams, who tossed two frames.

Martin and Juan Rivera drove in runs for the 49ers in the ninth before Hunter nailed down his third save.

Irby and Alex Peltier had RBIs as the Pirates took a 2-0 lead in the second.

Collins went 3-for-5 as ECU had a 10-6 lead in hits.