NSU Rallies in Game 2 to Salvage Doubleheader against NCCU
NORFOLK, Va. – Senior Kathy Cortez hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth to complete a late-game comeback and give the Norfolk State softball team a split of a doubleheader against North Carolina Central on Saturday afternoon at the NSU Softball Field.
The Eagles were headed to a twinbill sweep, winning the first game 5-2 and leading the second contest, 3-1, heading into the bottom of the seventh. NSU rallied with two runs in the seventh and then ended the game in walk-off style in the eighth for a 4-3 victory.
In a matchup that officially counted as a non-conference doubleheader, NSU (19-21) struggled on offense thanks to NCCU pitcher London Booker. She pitched both games and struck out 18 altogether. The Spartans, though, finished with nine hits in game 2 and finally got going late.
NCCU (8-33) tallied an insurance run in the seventh for a 3-1 edge, but the Spartans forced extra innings. Senior Morgan Boyd singled to short with one out, and sophomore Heather Dunning followed with a single through the right side. Junior Alina Moriarty poked a double over the right fielder’s head to score both and tie it up.
The Spartans had a chance to win it when sophomore Whitney Williams hit a chopper over the third baseman, but Moriarty was thrown out at home trying to score from second.
In the eighth, junior Liz Riley got out of the inning without allowing a run despite NCCU having a runner on second to start the inning due to international tiebreaker rules.
NSU started off the same in its half of the frame, and pinch runner Mikki Haury went to third on a sac bunt attempt by senior Nikki Jones. She safely reached first on an error on the throw, and then Cortez hit one to deep left field that easily scored Haury for the winning run.
Riley (2-5) gave up 10 hits but allowed just three runs, one earned, with six strikeouts for the win.
Jones gave NSU an early 1-0 lead when she lofted a single down the right field line in the bottom of the first. That came after Dunning had reached on a bunt single and Williams hit a shot right off the third baseman to put a pair of runners on.
The Eagles responded by scoring two unearned runs in the second for a 2-1 lead. A single and an error put runners on second and third, and one run came home on a ball hit right in front of the plate. The Eagles then got the call at first on a bang-bang play, allowing the second run of the inning to score.
Booker (6-20) struck out six and gave up nine hits and four runs, three earned, in all 7.1 innings for the loss.
She also struck out 12 and scattered seven hits while giving up two earned runs in game 1. The Eagle offense, meanwhile, scored all five of its runs in the second and third innings.
Two scored in the second, including one on a hit batter with the bases loaded and a second on a sac fly to left. In the third, Emerie Germ hit a solo homer to straight-away center field, and NCCU tacked on two more runs on a pair of RBI hits.
The Spartans finally broke through in the fifth inning, when Cortez and junior Sommer Di Fulgo hit back-to-back doubles to the right-center field wall. Williams hit a solo homer in the seventh for the final scoring of game 1.
Williams went 3-for-4 in game 2 and had four hits over the course of the day. Her home run was NSU’s 35th of the year, tying the program’s fastpitch record for homers in a season.
Dunning went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in the second game as well and had three hits on the afternoon.
NSU will host Hampton next weekend for the final regular season games of the year. Next Saturday will also be Senior Day, as the Spartans will honor their departing players before the doubleheader at 1 p.m.
For complete story, visit www.nsuspartans.com or www.nccueaglepride.com
Bethune-Cookman takes two from Savannah State
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Bethune-Cookman swept Savannah State in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Southern Division doubleheader Saturday, taking wins of 3-2 and 5-1 at Sunnyland Park.
The Wildcats (20-27 overall, 10-1 MEAC) and Tigers (21-19,5-6) conclude the series Sunday at noon. It’s also Senior Day for Bethune-Cookman, who will honor Kelsey Rodney, Shanel Tolbert and manager Kenya Collins in a pre-game ceremony.
In the opener, Calesha Shelley scored both her runs without the aid of a Wildcat hit, including the game-winner in the bottom of the seventh on Kaitlin Alamprese’s sacrifice fly.
After Savannah State took a 2-0 lead after two innings, Shelley capitalized on three Tiger wild pitches for her third-inning run. B-CU tied the game in the fifth when Kelsey Rodney scored on Bailey Conner’s single.
In the seventh, Shelley led off with a walk, advanced to second on a passed ball and then third on a wild pitch. Alamprese’s fly ball to center was deep enough that Shelley scored easily.
Sabrina Anguiano picked up the win, benefiting from a third-inning double play. She retired nine in a row at one point, and got conference leading hitter Torian Wright to strike out looking with a running in scoring position to end the seventh.
The win was just the third time in 23 games the Wildcats won when they didn’t score the first run. It also was B-CU’s sixth one-run victory in conference play.
In the second game, Sophia Ortega and Alamprese each drove in two runs as the Wildcats led from start to finish for the sweep.
Alamprese’s RBI single and a RBI double from Melissa Berouty gave B-CU a 2-0 first inning lead. After the Tigers closed to 2-1 in the fourth, Ortega’s two-run double down the right field line scored Rodney and Anguiano to make it 4-1.
Alamprese gave the Wildcats an insurance run in the sixth with her second hit of the game, a double that scored Destinee Williams.
Rodney, Ortega and Williams also had two hits for the Wildcats. Conner, aiding her own cause in the fifth by turning a double play to end a bases-loaded threat, picked up the victory while Anguiano got the final two outs for the save.
For complete story, visit www.bcuathletics.com or www.ssuathletics.com
Hornets Sweep Howard on the Road in Saturday’s Doubleheader
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Saturday afternoon on the road, the Delaware State softball team (28-15, 11-3 MEAC) dominated the Howard Bison (4-35, 3-14 MEAC) to come away with a pair of five-inning victories, 10-1 and 11-1.
In game one with DSU already leading by two after the first inning, the Hornets broke the contest open during the third by scoring five runs on four hits and three HU errors, headlined by a Sandy Hawthorne RBI-double to bring in Chloe Oro.
At game’s end, the Hornets tallied 12 hits, led by Oro going 3-for-4 and scoring three runs. In the case of Hawthorne, Jessica Madrid and Rochelle Sablay, they all recorded two hits each.
Pitching wise, freshman Vanessa Ciocatto (10-5) allowed four hits, a walk and fanned two HU batters to pick up the victory.
In the second game, the score was knotted at one until the Hornets scored five runs in the fourth, beginning with back-to-back home runs by Sablay (4) and infielder Jordan Stamps (6) to lead off the inning. Later in the frame, outfielder Nicole Gazzola (1) got in the action with a three-run blast.
In the fifth, the Hornets once again scored five runs, this time with freshman Tara Tursellino (2) getting things started with a two-run homer, followed by infielder Danielle Velez (3) blasting a solo shot. To put the finishing touches on game two, Oro RBI-doubled to drive in Kaitlyn Slater and Gazzola RBI-singling up the middle to make it a 10-1 ball game.
At the plate, DSU totaled 10 hits, spearheaded by Gazzola going 3-for-3 with four RBI, while pitcher Rachel Meagley (8-5) picked up the win surrendering four hits, a walk, no earned runs and tallying a game-high two strikeouts.
On Sunday, the Columbia Blue & Red will aim for the series sweep over the Bison at 1 p.m.
For complete story, visit www.dsuhornets.com or www.hubison.com
Coppin State-Hampton Saturday softball postponed
BALTIMORE – The scheduled softball doubleheader between Coppin State and Hampton for Saturday, April 26, 2014 has been postponed due to unplayable field conditions. The teams will play a doubleheader on Sunday, April 27, 2014 beginning at 12:00 p.m.
For complete story, visit www.coppinstatesports.com or www.hamptonpirates.com
UMES and Morgan State twinbill postponed
BALTIMORE - Due to Friday night’s thunderstorm, Saturday's doubleheader between the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) and Morgan State University (MSU) has been postponed.
On Sunday, both squads will compete in a crucial doubleheader instead of a single, seven-inning contest.
Game times are slated for noon and 2:30 p.m. The third game of the regular-season series will be rescheduled at a later date.
For complete story, visit www.umeshawks.com or www.morganstatebears.com