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NORFOLK, Va. – After two straight weekends on the road – both in the state of Florida no-less – the Norfolk State softball team returns to the NSU Softball Field to host Longwood Wednesday at 4 p.m. in a doubleheader. The Spartans will welcome conference foe South Carolina State this weekend, with a DH Saturday at 1 p.m. and a single game Sunday at noon.

As with every home game, fans can follow the action through the live, in-game statistics. NSU will also provide a live video stream of the home contests this week.

The Spartans enter the Longwood doubleheader with a 7-18 overall record as well as a 1-5 conference slate. The Lancers own a 23-8 record this year, including doubleheader sweeps of South Carolina and Charleston Southern last weekend. Hawai'i, Virginia and Notre Dame have also fallen victim to Longwood this year.

South Carolina State carries an overall record of 6-33, 2-4 in the conference, with a Tuesday afternoon doubleheader against Savannah State on tap. In their most recent action over the weekend, the Bulldogs got swept by Bethune-Cookman, 10-1, 9-1, 10-0, at home.

About Longwood: The independent Lancers are led by their solid No. 1 starter, Briana Wells. She has started 27 of the team's 31 games in addition to relief appearances in the other four. She owns a 20-8 record with a 2.24 ERA, giving up 134 hits and striking out 117 in 181.1 innings (out of 210.2 total).

On the offensive end, Brooke Short leads the Lancers with a .392 average, 10 home runs and 33 RBI. Jordan Cox is hitting .337 with seven homers and 23 RBI, while Nichole Simmons leads the team with 23 runs, six doubles and 15 stolen bases in addition to four home runs and 16 RBI. Maggie Margadonna has scored 20 runs with five homers and 18 RBI.

As a team, Longwood hits .283 and has tallied 31 homers in 31 games.

About S.C. State: The Bulldogs hit just .207 as a team, with their top two hitters, Denitia Carter and Shayla Stevenson, sitting at .350 and .286, respectively, in limited action. Shannon Baity provides the pop in the lineup with a team-leading three home runs and 16 RBI. LaTavia Riley also has 16 RBI on the year, while Tonya Giles has scored 16 runs and stolen eight bases.

The Bulldogs bring out just two pitchers to the circle in Raven Johnson and Vianney Gomez. Johnson has started 17 games with a 4.60 ERA, while Gomez has started the other 21 games and owns a 6.56 ERA. The two pitchers have combined to give up 393 hits and 275 runs in 231.1 innings.

Last Time Out: Four RBI from first baseman Melina Valles propelled the Spartans to a 6-3 win over FAMU on Sunday after the Rattlers took both games on Saturday, 8-0, 3-1. Valles' bases-clearing double in the second inning scored the eventual winning runs, while Casey Pomeroy limited FAMU to three earned runs on eight hits with four strikeouts in all seven innings.

MEAC Standings Update: Following last weekend's action, Bethune-Cookman now stands 6-0 in the Southern Division after sweeping South Carolina State. FAMU sits at 2-1, while the Bulldogs own a 2-4 conference mark. North Carolina A&T, which got swept in a non-conference doubleheader against North Carolina Central on Saturday, is fourth in the division with a 1-2 record.

In the Northern Division, Delaware State owns a 5-1 MEAC mark after sweeping UMES in three games last weekend. Morgan State stands 4-2, while Hampton and Howard both carry a 3-3 record in conference play. Coppin State (2-4) and UMES (1-5) round out the division. The top 4 teams in each division advance to the MEAC tournament.

Boyd Continues Hot Streak: Hitting .167 after NSU's game against Marist on March 13, Morgan Boyd has hit safely in eight of the nine games she has played in since then, including the last five, to raise her average up to her current clip of .300. She is now one of five regular starters hitting .300 or better on the season. Boyd batted leadoff in NSU's last game after spending most of the season hitting out of the No. 9 hole.

Sauceda's Season One of Best Ever in D-I: Jeanette Sauceda currently owns a .375 average after spending a good portion of the season above .400. In NSU's Division I era (1998-present), only three players have hit .380 or better in a season (excluding 1999): Margaret McRobbie (.431), Charo Tate (.427) and Tammy Pezzella (.380), all during the 1998 season. Three players hit .370 or better in 2000, which also marks the last time an NSU player hit above .370 in a season.

Sauceda's done her best work with runners on base, hitting .432 (16-of-37) in those situations, including .478 (11-of-23) with runners in scoring position.

Up Next: NSU will play a doubleheader at Liberty April 20 at 2 p.m. before hosting UMES at the NSU Softball Field April 21 at 2 p.m.