Bethune-Cookman Overpowers UMES In Sweep

Bethune-Cookman pitchers Ali Simpson and Gabriel Hernandez to allow two runs on 11 hits over 13 innings as the Wildcats swept Maryland Eastern Shore in a MEAC doubleheader, 11-1 and 12-1 at Jackie Robinson Ballpark Friday.

Simpson (6-1) scattered five hits and one walk while striking out seven in six innings and Hernandez (4-3) threw a seven- inning complete game, giving up six hits and one walk while striking out five.

Ryan Durrence and D.J. Leonard supplied the B-CU (28-18, 14-0 MEAC) offense, each hitting 5-for-8 with three runs scored. UMES (5-37, 3-13) was led by Elliott Alston, who was 3-for-6 with a run.

B-CU got on the scoreboard with a run in the bottom of the first. Justin Hoyte singled to start the inning, stole second and scored on a Durrence double down the left-field line.

The Wildcats made it 4-0 in the second, taking advantage of three UMES errors, two of which came from freshman left fielder Tre-von Johnson.

For the complete story, visit www.umeshawks.com or www.b-cuathletics.com

Aggies Sweep Hornets in Saturdays' Doubleheader

North Carolina A&T's bats continued to punish conference foes on Saturday with 17-2 and 11-5 wins over Delaware State in baseball doubleheader action at War Memorial Stadium.

The Aggies hit four home runs in the first game and Xavier Macklin hit a homer in Game 2. Senior lead-off hitter George Hines went 3-for-5 with five RBIs and two runs scored in the first game. Freshman Alex Grubb added a 2-for-4 performance with two runs scored and four RBIs.

Sophomore Esterlin Paulino (6-2) earned the win by pitching six innings and striking out three.

In the second game, Macklin and freshman Kelvin Freeman had three RBIs apiece. Senior Nick Rogers pulled his normal effective double duty. He went 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored. On the mound, he improved to 8-3 by striking out nine over seven innings.

For the complete story, visit www.ncataggies.com or www.dsuhornets.com

Bethune-Cookman Shuts Out UMES, 18-0

D.J. Leonard and Justin Hoyte each hit gland slams and Patrick Goelz pitched four innings of two-hit ball to lead Bethune-Cookman to an 18-0 win over Maryland Eastern Shore baseball team in the series final at Jackie Robinson Ballpark Saturday.

The Wildcats (29-18, 15-0 MEAC) remained unbeaten in conference play with the series sweep, getting runs and hits from nine and eight different players respectively. UMES (5-38, 3-14) managed only four hits against four B-CU pitchers, including a pair of singles in the third and seventh innings. Freshman right fielder Donnie Haines went 2-for-2 with a walk for the Hawks.

B-CU leadoff hitter Matt White was 4-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBIs and Leonard and Hoyte combined to hit 5-f0r-8 with eight RBIs.

Goelz (4-1) earned the win striking out three and issuing no walks before Jordan Dailey, Joey Munoz and Chris Anselmo threw the last three innings out of the bullpen. UMS starter Karim Gonzalez was roughed up for nine runs on eight hits and three walks in two innings to take the loss and fall to 0-4 on the season.

Ryan Durrence put B-CU up, 2-0, in the first with his 13th home run of the season to left with one out. Up 5-0 on the second with one out Leonard unloaded on a Gonzalez offering, shooting it over the fence left to make it 9-0 through two.

For the complete story, visit www.umeshawks.com or www.b-cuathletics.com

Jeffries Powers FAMU To A Sweep Of The Eagles

FAMU senior infielder Jared Jeffries was game-changing performer of the day Saturday afternoon, as his timely hitting lifted the Rattler baseball team to a MEAC doubleheader sweep of Coppin State, 14-13 and 6-4 at Moore-Kittles Field.

In the opener, it was Jeffries' clutch two-out double, which was nearly snared by leaping CSU first baseman Harry Williams in the bottom of the ninth which plated three runs, erasing a 13-11 deficit.

Jeffries' hit capped a furious five-run, two-out Rattler rally, which began with Daniel Lee's two-run single to right, slicing the Eagles' lead to 13-11, setting the stage for the dramatic game-winning blow two batters later.

Coppin State had taken a 13-9 lead in the top of the ninth, scoring four runs to break a 9-9 tie, taking advantage of a FAMU throwing error, a two-run double by Jim Vagnier and an RBI single by Chris Kashangaki to take the lead.

Then in the nightcap with FAMU trailing 4-2, Jeffries keyed a four-run fifth with a two-run double to pull the Rattlers even at 4-4. Then an RBI double by Oscar Santalo and a run scoring single by Darius Washington staked FAMU to a 6-4 lead which they never relinquished.

For the complete story, visit www.famurattlersports.com or www.coppinstatesports.com

Spartans, Tigers Split Doubleheader

Ryan Wiggins hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth inning of game one to lead Norfolk State to a 3-2 win, but Savannah State rallied to take game two, 9-1, to salvage a split of the team's doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Marty L. Miller Field.

The Spartans are now 16-22-1 on the year, while SSU is 24-21.

In game one, NSU rallied from a 2-1 deficit behind some clutch pitching and hitting. Both teams scored a run in the first. SSU scored first on Dexter Kelley's RBI triple, while NSU answered in the bottom of the first when Chris Joyce singled and later scored on a Tigers' error to tie the score.

Joseph McCrary made it 2-1 in SSU's favor with an RBI double in the fourth. The lead would stand until the bottom of the sixth. Chris Warren led off with a single, his second hit of the game, and was sacrificed to second by Sammy Serafine. Warren went to third on a failed pickoff attempt, and scored the tying run on a Cameron Parsons groundout.

Warren (2-2, two runs scored in game 1) was also responsible for starting the go-ahead rally in the eighth. He led off the frame by walking, and Serafine again sacrificed Warren to second. Parsons singled to put runners at the corners, and Wiggins followed with a sacrifice fly to left to drive home Warren.

Game two would be a different story as the Tigers scored twice in the first, then put it out of reach with a five-run sixth inning.

For the complete story, visit www.nsuspartans.com