Leon Schabacker did not allow an earned run and fanned a career-high tying nine batters as No. 5 Norfolk State eliminated No. 4 Delaware State with a 5-1 victory in the loser’s bracket of the MEAC Baseball Tournament on Friday night at Marty L. Miller Field.

Schabacker (6-6) surrendered just six hits and one unearned run, walking just one batter. He extended his own single-season school record for complete games to seven, sending NSU (23-23) into a Saturday morning elimination game against No. 3 Florida A&M.

NSU scratched out single runs in the third and fifth innings. Brad Stephenson singled to shortstop, advanced to second on a balk and scored on a two-out double by Chris Joyce for the Spartans’ first tally, in the top of the third.

In the fifth inning, Stephenson doubled in John Lynch, who led off the inning with a double of his own, to give NSU a 2-0 lead.

The Spartans added insurance by scoring a pair of runs in the seventh. Jerrod Farley and Lynch singled to lead off the inning, and Moriba George reached first when the Hornets (16-33) misplayed his sacrifice bunt. Stephenson then drew a walk from DSU starter J.R. McAllister (3-6) to force in another run, and Joyce’s deep fly ball scored another run.

The Hornets cut their deficit to 4-1 in the bottom of the seventh. Jose Sanchez reached on a one-out error and scored on a Ryan Mailen RBI single. But Schabacker coaxed the Hornets into two popouts to end the inning, leaving the bases loaded.

NSU’s final run scored in the eighth on Lynch’s second double of the night.

Lynch finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored for NSU. George and Stephenson each went 2-for-4, and Stephenson and Joyce knocked in two runs apiece.

Mailen was 2-for-4 for the Hornets. McAllister took the loss, allowing 10 hits and four runs, three earned, in six-plus innings.