Delaware State 8, North Carolina Central 3
DOVER, Del. -- Cole Bates threw eight strong innings and Trey Paige had two hits, including a home run, and three RBIs to lead Delaware State to an 8-3 win over North Carolina Central in the opener of a four-game MEAC series at Soldier Field on Friday.
The MEAC North-leading Hornets won their fifth straight game to improve to 8-4 in the division and 10-12 overall.
Bates struck out a career-high 10 batters and walked just one, while allowing three runs (one earned) on eight hits to improve to 2-2 on the season. He struck out the side in the second inning and fanned two in the third, fifth and eighth innings.
The Hornets scored all their runs off North Carolina Central ace and MEAC strikeout leader Austin Vernon, who allowed eight runs (six earned) on seven hits, while striking out eight and walking one in 7.1 innings.
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Norfolk State 5, Coppin State 3
NORFOLK, Va. -- Pinch hitter Korey Singh's two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning broke a 3-all tie and sent Norfolk State on its way to a 5-3 win over Coppin State in the series opener between the teams on Friday afternoon at Marty L. Miller Field.
Singh's single over the first baseman's head scored Dionte Brown, who singled, and Alsander Womack, who reached on a fielder's choice earlier in the inning.
NSU (12-20, 8-5 MEAC) senior left hander Tyrin Everette finished it from there, allowing one hit but striking out the other three Coppin State (5-18, 3-9) batters in the ninth to preserve the win.
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North Carolina A&T State 8, Florida A&M 2
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- North Carolina A&T State got the weekend started in the right direction thanks to the long ball and a solid start on the stump Friday afternoon in MEAC baseball play.
Multiple home runs from sophomore Cameran Brantley and a solid pitching outing from Cole Parks led the Aggies to an 8-2 triumph over Florida A&M inside War Memorial Stadium.
The Aggies improved to 10-24 overall and 5-8 in the MEAC.
NCAT tied a season high for hits with 14 on Friday. Brantley went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored for his first career multi-home run game. He is also the first Aggie this season with multiple home runs in a game.
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