Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Host North Carolina A&T pounded out 25 hits en route to a 10-5, 10-7 doubleheader sweep of Norfolk State on Saturday at War Memorial Stadium as MEAC play got underway for both teams.
C.J. Beatty and Joe McIntyre both homered and totaled five hits in the two games. Beatty had four RBI and McIntyre three.
In game 1, Beatty was 3-for-4 and scored three times, and McIntyre drove in two runs for the Aggies (8-11, 2-0 MEAC), who out-hit NSU 11-6.
The Spartans (7-9, 0-2) got on the board first. John Boyd III (Hempstead, N.Y.) homered for the second straight game, crushing a two-run shot in top of the first. It was his third homer of the season.
But the Aggies rallied with a five-run third off NSU starter Joey Seal (Newport News, Va.). McIntyre had a two-run single and Beatty also had a run-scoring base hit in the frame. The other two runs scored on two Spartan errors.
A&T extended its lead to 7-2 in the fifth, with two more runs scoring thanks to another NSU error.
Both teams picked up a run in the sixth. Billy Canady (Philadelphia, Pa.) hit an RBI double to bring NSU within 7-3, but Neil Rosser put the Aggies back up by five with a solo home run in the bottom of the inning.
NSU closed within 8-5 in the seventh. The Spartans loaded the bases with a pair of walks and a hit batter by A&T reliever Chris Eggers. Jerrod Farley (Chester, Va.) drove in a run with an infield single, and Chris Joyce (Chesapeake, Va.) made it 8-5 with an RBI groundout. But A&T added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth to secure the win.
Seal (2-2) took the loss for NSU. He allowed four earned runs in six innings to go with two walks and two strikeouts. Tim Johnson earned the win for A&T after giving up three earned runs in 5.2 innings. He walked five and fanned five.
Six different Spartans had one hit in the first game.
In game 2, Beatty and McIntyre both homered for the Aggies. Beatty was 2-for-4 with three RBI and McIntyre was 3-for-4 and scored three times.
The Aggies led the whole way. They scored four times in the first, aided by a Jeremy Jones RBI single and two Spartan errors. McIntyre hit a solo shot in the second off NSU starter Leon Schabacker (Virginia Beach, Va.).
A&T scored once more in the third and twice in the fourth to take an 8-1 lead before NSU rallied. The Spartans scored four times in the fifth. Canady, George and John Lynch (Newport News, Va.) had consecutive singles in the inning. Chase Bailey (Roanoke, Va.) and Joyce both knocked in runs with ground balls. Lynch scored on an Aggie error and Bailey later crossed the plate after a passed ball.
But A&T put the game out of reach when Beatty hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth for a 10-5 A&T lead.
The Spartans managed two runs in the seventh on run-scoring singles by Joyce and Farley, but Marquise Frink limited the damage to earn the save for the Aggies.
John Primus (2-2) got the win for A&T. He pitched five innings and allowed five runs, three earned. Jones added three hits for the Aggies.
Schabacker (3-2) took the loss, allowing 10 runs, six earned, in six innings. The NSU offense was led by Lynch and Joyce, who each had two hits. Joyce knocked in three runs and the second game and four for the doubleheader.
The teams complete their three-game series on Sunday at 1 p.m.
