Chris Joyce, John Lynch and Anselmo Cantu combined for 12 hits and 11 runs batted in as Norfolk State swept a non-conference doubleheader from North Carolina Central, 14-4 and 13-0 on Wednesday afternoon at Marty L. Miller Field.
Joyce was 4-for-6 with a home run, double, and five RBI. Lynch and Cantu both went 4-for-8, with Lynch driving in four runs and Cantu two for the Spartans (11-16), who have won three in a row.
In game 1, a nine-run third inning proved to be more than enough for NSU to overtake the Eagles (5-22).
The Eagles picked up two runs with two outs in the top of the first. NSU starting pitcher Jason Donovan walked two hitters and gave up a single to Blake Murray to load the bases. Kurt Wilson then reached on a two-out NSU error which allowed a pair of runs to score.
After failing to get a hit in the first two innings off Eagle pitcher Brandon Oatis (1-4), the Spartans picked up their offense in the third, sending 13 hitters to the plate and scoring nine runs. TiQuan Griffin led off with a single and went to second on an Oatis wild pitch. Lynch then followed with an RBI single to left, scoring Griffin. Lynch came around to score on a throwing error by Oatis, and Joyce’s RBI infield single gave NSU a 3-2 lead.
Later in the frame, Oatis issued two-out bases-loaded walks to Chris Warren and Griffin to force in a pair of runs. Oatis was lifted in favor of James Jordan, but he was greeted by a two-run single by Lynch and a two-run double by Brandon Hairston that put NSU ahead 9-2.
Robert Landis hit an RBI single in the top of the fourth, but NSU answered with three more in the bottom of the inning. Joyce walked and went to third on a single by Juan Herrera. Both scored on a two-run double by Jerrod Farley. Farley crossed home on a groundout by Drew Suttmiller to give NSU a 12-3 edge.
Cantu ended the game due to the 10-run rule with a two-run double in the bottom of the sixth.
Donovan (1-1) picked up his first pitching victory as a Spartan. He allowed five hits and four runs, just one earned, in five innings. Freshman Pat Hall made his first career pitching appearance and pitched a 1-2-3 sixth inning.
NSU picked up in the second game where it left off in the first, tallying 17 hits while holding NCCU to two. The Spartans batted around in the first and second innings of game 2. In the first, Lynch led off with an infield single and went to third on another double by Cantu. Joyce followed with a three-run homer to left, his third blast of the week. The Spartans added another run in the inning thanks to three Eagle errors.
NSU added five more runs in the second. Joyce tacked on a run-scoring double and Hall hit a sacrifice fly. Suttmiller, Griffin and Lynch all had two-out, run-scoring singles to push the Spartans’ advantage to 9-0.
Farley stroked an RBI single and Ryan Wiggins a run-scoring double in the third. Herrera added a solo homer to lead off the fourth, his third of the year, and Wiggins an RBI single to make it 13-0.
Jason Barker got the win in the nightcap. Barker (3-3) faced the minimum 12 batters through four shutout innings, pitching around a second-inning walk and a fourth-inning single. Freshman Kyle Davis pitched a scoreless fifth inning for NSU as the game was again ended due to the mercy rule.
Farley and Griffin added three hits apiece over the two games, and Wiggins was 2-for-2 in the nightcap.
The Spartans host Delaware State for a three-game series this weekend. The teams play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m.