Box Score

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Eric Thomas struck out seven over seven innings, and Jose Ortiz went 3-for-4 with two RBI as first-place Bethune-Cookman completed a three-game MEAC sweep of Norfolk State with a 5-2 win on Sunday afternoon at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

Thomas (6-0) allowed just three hits and two runs, one earned, for the Wildcats (22-13, 9-0 MEAC). Phil Enright got the save by pitching the final two innings.

Leon Schabacker (Virginia Beach, Va.) took the loss for NSU (13-13, 3-6) to drop to 4-3. He allowed four earned runs in seven innings, striking out three.

The Wildcats took a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Neal Jones hit a one-out triple and scored on Emmanuel Castro's single. In the third inning, Aaron Patterson struck out, but reached first on a passed ball. He came around to score on Justin Hoyte's single for a 2-0 B-CU edge.

The Spartans got a run back in the fourth. Brad Stephenson (Chesapeake, Va.) led off with his team-leading 10th double of the season. He later scored on a groundout by Brandon Hairston (North Garden, Va.).

But B-CU extended its lead by scoring three times with two outs in the fourth. Kenneth Ford started the rally with an RBI single, then Ortiz knocked in two runs with a single of his own to make it 5-1.

NSU was only able to plate one more run, that coming in the sixth inning. Moriba George (St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.) hit a one-out double, went to third on a single by Stephenson and scored when B-CU misplayed a grounder hit by John Boyd III (Hempstead, N.Y.). The Spartans managed just three runs and 12 hits over the three-game series.

Ortiz was the only player with more than one hit for the Wildcats, who out-hit NSU 11-4. George and Stephenson each went 2-for-4 with a double, accounting for all of the Spartans' hits.

NSU looks to get back on the winning track Wednesday at VMI. The game is slated for a 5 p.m. start in Lexington, Va.