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Live Stats vs. UMES | Live Video vs. UMES
NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State softball team will step out of conference for a pair of mid-week doubleheaders as the Spartans head to Liberty Wednesday before returning home to host UMES Thursday.
NSU will face Liberty at 2 p.m., while Thursday's twinbill with UMES will also start at 2 p.m. out at the NSU Softball Field. Live stats will be available on both days, while the doubleheader against UMES can also be seen live at the home of NSU Athletics.
The Spartans own a 10-21 record on the season, while Liberty owned an 18-18 record prior to a doubleheader against Hampton on Tuesday. UMES enters the contest 6-28 overall but has not played since April 10 after last weekend's rainout at Morgan State.
About Liberty: The Flames have tallied 36 home runs in 36 games, led by Kelly Strickland, who leads the team in hitting (.402), runs (27), home runs (10), RBI (28), slugging percentage (.729) and on-base percentage (.496). Not to be outdone, Kelly McMillon (.391, 5 home runs, 24 RBI) and Ashley Bensinger (.317, 27 runs, 5 home runs, 25 RBI) also provide plenty of offensive firepower.
The Flames hit .288 as a team but are also allowing teams to bat .279 off them. Katrina Johnson has been the leader of the pitching staff with an 11-5 record and 2.39 ERA in 120 innings. Johnson has started 19 of the team's 36 games, while Tiffani Smith has started 13 games and appeared in 23 with a 6-10 record and 4.41 ERA in 81 innings.
About UMES: The Hawks have struggled mightily in the circle, as UMES pitchers have a combined 6.18 ERA and have given up 278 runs, but just 191 earned, in 216.1 innings. The opposition is hitting .338 on the year against the Hawks.
On the flip side, the Hawks are hitting .266 as a team, thanks in large part to freshman catcher Charlise Castro, who leads the way with a .422 batting average. Castro leads all MEAC players with 11 home runs, 39 RBI and a .882 slugging percentage. She has also scored a team-leading 26 runs and hit 10 doubles on the year.
Amber Corrigan owns a .312 batting average with 21 runs score, while Carmen Gurrola is hitting .298 with 21 runs and 11 RBI. The two are also UMES' primary pitchers. Gurrola has started 16 games and owns a 3-14 record with a 6.02 ERA, while Corrigan also stands 3-14 overall and has made the other 18 starts with a 6.31 ERA.
Last Time Out: South Carolina State salvaged the series with NSU after defeating the Spartans, 11-10, in eight innings on Sunday. NSU won the first two games of the series on Saturday, 4-1, 4-3. In Sunday's matinee, NSU rallied with four runs in the bottom of the seventh, including a three-run home run by Jeanette Sauceda, to force extra innings. After S.C. State scored four in the top of the eight, NSU added three in the bottom half of the frame before stranding the tying run at third base.
Bats Come Alive: NSU hit a combined .357 (35-of-98) on the weekend against S.C. State, led by Morgan Boyd (6-for-12) and Nikki Jones (4-for-8). Six of NSU's regular starters hit .400 or better in the three-game series, including Gipsy Ramirez (4-of-9), Danielle Wright (5-of-12), and Jeanette Sauceda and Kathy Cortez (4-of-10).
Boyd Extends Hitting Streak: Morgan Boyd stretched her hitting streak into double digits with a 3-for-5 day on Sunday, as she has now hit safely in 10 straight contests and 13 of the last 14. During that 14-game stretch, Boyd is hitting .476 and has raised her batting average from .167 to .333.
Boyd's top-of-the-lineup companion, Danielle Wright, is currently in the midst of a six-game hitting streak. Wright has hit safely in 11 of the last 13 games.
MEAC Standings: After taking two of three from South Carolina State last weekend, NSU sits third in the Southern Division with a 3-6 record. The Bulldogs also have a 3-6 mark, although the Spartans own the tiebreaker. Bethune-Cookman continues to top the standings with a 6-0 record, while Florida A&M is second at 5-1. North Carolina A&T, 1-5 in conference play, stands fifth.
NSU will wrap up its conference season April 30 and May 1 against A&T, while B-CU and FAMU will battle for first place that same weekend. On May 7-8, S.C. State will take on FAMU and A&T will face B-CU. If NSU sweeps A&T or takes two out of three against the Aggies, the Spartans will advance to the MEAC tournament, as only the top four teams in the division head to the tournament.
If A&T wins two out of three, the Aggies would still need to win one game against B-CU while S.C. State would need to win two against FAMU in order for both of those teams to finish ahead of NSU in the standings. If A&T sweeps NSU, S.C. State would need a win against FAMU to finish ahead of NSU.
Up Next: NSU will take the weekend off before traveling to UMES and Hampton next Wednesday and Thursday in non-conference play.
