Bethune-Cookman sweeps South Carolina State
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Shanel Tolbert threw her first collegiate no-hitter Sunday as Bethune-Cookman concluded a series sweep of South Carolina State with an 8-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Southern Division victory at Sunnyland Park.
The junior from Los Angeles walked one and struck out two, giving up a leadoff walk in the first and an error in the second while the Wildcat (11-28 overall, 5-0 MEAC) offense quickened things with a five-run third and three-run fourth.
Tolbert won all three games in the series and also had a strong non-conference performance against Jacksonville earlier in the week, giving up one unearned run against a Dolphins teams ranked 42 in the NCAA’s RPI.
For the complete story visit www.bcuathletics.com or www.scsuathletics.com
Delaware State completes sweep with 12-4 win
Dover, Del. --- Rochelle Sablay tied her career high with four runs batted in, while three other players drove in two runs each to lead Delaware State to a 12-4 MEAC softball win over Morgan State at the Hornets’ Nest this afternoon. The Hornets scored 12 unanswered runs after trailing 4-0 early in the game.
DSU swept the three-game series with its fifth straight win. The Hornets also improved to 4-2 in the MEAC.
The Hornets took the lead with four runs in the fifth. The big blow in the inning was a two-run triple by Sablay to give DSU an 8-4 lead. Nicole Gazzolla singled in a run and Jess Madrid brought home a run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth.
Oro, Gazzolla and Madrid drove in two runs each for the Hornets. Gazzolla had a team-high three hits (3-for-5), while four others had two hits for DSU.
The Hornets outscored Morgan State 30-11 in the three-game series.
For the complete story visit www.dsuhornets.com or www.morganstatebears.com
Pitching Helps FAMU Defeat North Carolina A&T
GREENSBORO – A misplaced fastball and Jennifer Lindsey were the main culprits in North Carolina A&T’s 5-0 loss to Florida A&M in MEAC softball action at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex on Sunday.
The Rattlers (11-27, 4-2 MEAC) took two of three from the Aggies (4-23, 2-4 MEAC) thanks to Lindsey, the Rattlers starting pitcher. Lindsey started the first game of the series on Saturday and was ineffective. A&T scored six runs and had nine hits off of her, and she was chased after only three innings of work in the Aggies victory. But somehow Lindsey figured out the Aggie hitters from there.
She came on in relief during the second game of the series on Saturday and pitched three innings without giving up an earned run as the Rattlers took Game 2.
Lindsey pitched a complete-game four-hit shutout, where she struck out four and did not walk a batter in 101 pitches. Junior A&T starter Shelby Snyder was no slouch. Snyder also pitched seven innings and had four strikeouts.
The only other runners the Aggies put in scoring position was Detavia Keenan in the fourth off of a sacrifice bunt, and Smith in the seventh off of a double.
A&T’s weekend series puts it in a fierce struggle with S.C. State for the fourth and final tournament seed out of the MEAC Southern Division. In order to qualify for the MEAC tournament in May, the Aggies must finish in the top 4 of the division. The Bulldogs and the Aggies are both 2-4, but the Bulldogs own the tiebreaker after taking two out of three from the Aggies the last weekend of March.
Next weekend will be another crucial three-game conference series for the Aggies. They will face Savannah State in a 1 p.m., doubleheader at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex on Saturday before closing out the series at noon on Sunday.
For the complete story visit www.famuathletics.com or www.ncataggies.com
Hawks take game three over Norfolk State
NORFOLK, Va. – Poor fielding on Norfolk State and solid hitting on the part of Maryland Eastern Shore gave the Hawks a 9-6 victory over the Spartan softball team on Sunday afternoon in the third game of the three-game series at the NSU Softball Field.
NSU committed five errors and also left 10 runners on base, including a combined five in the fourth and fifth innings when the Spartans could have cut into the UMES lead. As a result, NSU suffered its first loss in conference play this year. The Spartans now stand 15-18 overall, 8-1 in the MEAC.
Sophomore Haley Ward belted a pair of homers and went 2-for-4 with two runs and three RBI in the game. For the Hawks (11-21, 3-6), Trenece Nash drove in three runs on a pair of hits, while Vanessa Gomez hit 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI from the leadoff spot.
UMES plated a pair of runs in the first inning thanks to a pair of errors on the Spartans, but starter Jamie Schulle struck out the last two batters to end the threat. Ward responded with a two-run homer over the center field fence in the bottom of the first, and then again in the third the teams traded runs.
Ward hit a solo homer to right center field with one out, and a few batters later senior Chelsea Davis hit an RBI groundout to score the second run. But NSU left runners on the corners, and the Hawks added four more runs in the fourth for a 9-4 lead.
Gomez and Carmen Gurrola had RBI hits, and several batters later Nash hit an RBI single. The last of the four runs scored on a Spartan error.
Schulle (10-10) settled down in the latter innings but still suffered the loss after giving up six runs, two earned, on seven hits. Gurrola (9-12) earned the win despite giving up six runs, four earned, on 11 hits with six strikeouts.
NSU will hit the road next weekend to take on Morgan State. The two teams will play a doubleheader Saturday at 1 p.m. with a single game Sunday at noon.
For the complete story visit www.nsuspartans.com or www.umeshawks.com
Hedderly Leads SSU Past N.C. Central
SAVANNAH, Ga. – Led by senior Madison Hedderly, the Savannah State softball team downed North Carolina Central, 5-1, in the final game of a three-game series on Sunday. With the win, SSU swept the series after winning both games in Saturday's doubleheader.
Hedderly competed a full seven innings in the circle with nine strikeouts, allowing one earned run on four hits with no walks. The Dublin, Ohio native picked up her 16th pitching win of the season.
From the plate, the Lady Tigers blasted nine runs in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) match up. Leading SSU was freshman Michaela Patton who was 2-for-4 in the batter's box.
After three and a half scoreless innings with only a combined two hits on the board, Savannah State broke the stalemate with a game-changing fourth inning.
Central's London Booker was tagged with her 19th loss of the season after 4.0 innings of work. She allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits with three walks and three strikeouts.
The Lady Tigers improved to 20-14 overall and 4-2 in the MEAC, while N.C. Central falls to 2-29 and 0-5 in the conference.
Savannah State travels to Greensboro, North Carolina next weekend for a three-game MEAC series against North Carolina A&T.
For the complete story visit www.nccueaglepride.com or www.ssuathletics.com