Coppin State Extends Win Streak to Seven Straight
BALTIMORE -- Paige Arnold recorded a pair of complete-game victories and Emily DeJesus and Tiffani Whaley each drove in runs as Coppin State extended its winning streak to seven straight with a doubleheader sweep of Howard on Friday at the Coppin State Softball Field.
The Eagles won the opener 2-1 and then completed the sweep with a 2-1 victory in game two.
With the sweep, Coppin State tied the school record with its seventh-consecutive victory and improved to 14-14 overall and 7-1 in the MEAC.
Howard dropped to 4-22 overall and 2-2 in conference play with the two losses.
Arnold, who upped her record to 12-9 on the season, had to work out of a jam in the top of the seventh inning to secure the sweep.
Trailing 2-1, Howard opened the seventh inning with a double from Samantha Gatson and pinch-hitter Ashley Turner followed with a single up the middle putting runners on first and third with no outs.
Arnold got Andascha Moore-Pryor to ground out to second, which advanced Turner to second. Then she struck out Lorae Robinson for the second out of the inning and finished the game by getting Trina Kindred to ground out to second.
Arnold dominated game one as she allowed only one hit and struck out six batters.
Arnold hit a one-out triple in the bottom of the first inning and came in to score when DeJesus hit into a fielder's choice.
The Eagles upped the lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the third inning when Arnold doubled and later stole home.
Howard pushed a run across in the top of the fifth inning when Brittany Barker singled in Jenny Ly to trim the lead to 2-1.
The Bison got a runner on base in the top of the seventh inning via a Coppin State error, but the Eagles ended the game when Ly lined into a double play.
Howard struck for a run in the top of the first inning of the second game when Rebecca Kirshner lifted a sacrifice fly that scored Robinson.
Coppin State answered back with two runs in the bottom of the first inning.
Heather Josker singled up the middle to open the inning and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Arnold lifted a fly to right, which allowed Josker to advance to third.
Josker tied the score at 1-1 when she scored on a passed ball.
Samantha Denlinger doubled with two outs and scored when Whaley followed with a single to right giving the Eagles the lead for good.
Nicole Boggs, Whaley and Denlinger each had three hits in the doubleheader for Coppin State, while Arnold and DeJesus each had two hits.
For the complete story, visit www.howard-bison.com or www.coppinstatesports.com
Schulle, Riley Combine to Shut Out UMES, 8-0, 10-0
NORFOLK, Va. - Sophomore Jamie Schulle tied a school record with 12 strikeouts, and the Norfolk State softball team dominated UMES in a pair of five-inning wins, 8-0, 10-0, Friday afternoon in a MEAC doubleheader at Hawks Field.
Schulle gave up just four hits in the first game of the day, while Riley did even better in Game 2, allowing just two base hits. Freshman Haley Ward went 4-for-4 in that second game. NSU tallied 20 hits on the afternoon and played flawless ball in moving to 14-17 overall, 3-2 in conference play.
Ward hit 6-for-8 in the doubleheader with four runs and two RBI, including a pair of run-scoring singles in the second game. Freshmen Alina Moriarty and Whittni Gray each blasted a pair of two-run home runs, and sophomore catcher Kathy Cortez scored two runs and drove in two more as well in Game 2.
Cortez, senior Whitney Holland and junior Gipsy Ramirez each drove in two runs in Game 1 to support Schulle's big day in the circle. The left-hander struck out seven in a row beginning with the third out of the first inning and recorded 12 of the last 13 outs of the contest via strikeout.
Schulle's 12-strikeout performance marked the sixth time an NSU pitcher has posted a dozen K's in a game, and the first since Micki Rodriguez did so nearly six years to the day, also against UMES, on April 5, 2006. Schulle improved her overall record to 7-8.
Wright hit 4-for-6 with two runs and two RBI combined on the day. UMES remained winless on the season at 0-25 overall, 0-8 in conference play.
Gurrola, the only pitcher on the Hawks roster, allowed five earned runs on nine hits with three strikeouts in the first game, followed by nine earned runs on 11 hits with two strikeouts in Game 2.
For the complete story, visit www.nsuspartans.com or www.umeshawks.com
Savannah State Outlast NCCU In Extra-Inning Contest On Friday
RALEIGH, N.C. - The Lady Eagles of North Carolina Central played their first extra inning contest of the season in 7-3 loss to the Tigers of Savannah State on Friday, April 6 in Raleigh, N.C., at the Walnut Creek Park Softball Contest.
Maroon and gray senior Andrea Searls guided NCCU with three hits, one run and one RBI on five times at bat. Fellow classmate Aurora pitched 8.0 for NCCU. She struck out three Tigers, while tallying 10 hits, two runs and two walks in her time in the circle. Junior Bianka Molina relieved Baker for 2.0 innings of action to allow five hits and five runs, while striking out one batter
After two consecutive innings of offensive silence, SSU exploded in the top of the 10th connecting on five hits and seizing five runs.
Neither squad attained a run in the eighth, sending the matchup into a ninth inning. With seven innings of play under her cleats, NCCU head coach Theresa Stephens sent Molina to the mound to relieve Baker in the top of the ninth.
The top of the 10th inning commenced with both teams still tied at two runs apiece.
SSU took broke the runless contest by bringing three Tigers home, including Katherine Stewart who slugged a homerun in the top of the 10th for a 5-2 lead. The Georgia natives sent two additional runners home before concluding the inning.
With Nadia Jefferies starting on second base, NCCU amassed one run for a final score of 7-3.
For the complete story, visit www.nccueaglepride.com or www.ssuathletics.com
Delaware State Defeats Morgan State, 7-3
BALTIMORE, Md. (April 6, 2012)-Morgan State dropped a 7-3 decision to visiting Delaware State in a MEAC game on Good Friday afternoon at Lois T. Murray Field. The contest was the MEAC home opener for the Lady Bears.
Delaware State (14-11-1, 4-0 MEAC), which was picked to win this year's MEAC title in the league's preseason poll, was led by Casey Beighley, who finished 3-for-4 with 4RBI and two runs scored. The senior also pitched five innings surrendering three runs on five hits, allowing four walks and had four strikeouts to improve to 5-3 on the season.
Morgan State, which fell to 7-14 overall and 1-3 in MEAC action, was led by Shareday Christina, who went 2-for-2 and Lydia Walther-Rodriguez, who went 2-for-4 with a run scored. Amber Bachman (3-6), who was charged with the loss, allowed five runs on six hits, four walks and tallied four strikeouts in 6.1 innings of work.
For the complete story, visit www.morganstatebears.com or www.dsuhornets.com
Tolbert Leads Bethune-Cookman Past South Carolina State
ORANGEBURG, S.C. - Shanel Tolbert threw her second straight shutout in the opener, and Michele Baneulos-Smith drove in three runs in the second game as Bethune-Cookman swept a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Southern Division doubleheader by scores of 4-0 and 7-2 over South Carolina State Friday afternoon.
The Wildcats (19-21 overall, 5-0 MEAC) extended their regular season conference winning streak to 20 games dating back to 2010.
Tolbert, who blanked North Carolina Central last Sunday, posted her fifth shutout of the season with her two-hitter in the opening. It was the first time a B-CU pitcher had consecutive shutouts since Allie Garcia in the final two games of the Winston-Salem series in 2009. No Lady Bulldog (11-20,0-5) runner advanced past second base.
Aurelia Gamch went 3-4 in the opener, scoring twice and driving in a run. Banuelos-Smith doubled twice, Kelsey Rodney had two hits with an RBI, and Shamaria hit a leadoff homer in the sixth.
Banuelos-Smith also had two doubles in the second game, the second driving in two runs in a four-run sixth that helped B-CU pull away from a 3-2 game.
Karina Romero went 3-4 with two runs scored for B-CU.
For the complete story, visit www.bcuathletics.com or www.scsuathletics.com