Box Score
NORFOLK, Va. – Senior Brandon Hairston hit his second homer in as many games and classmates Chris Joyce and TiQuan Griffin had three hits apiece as Norfolk State celebrated Senior Day with an 8-3 victory over Longwood on Saturday at Marty L. Miller Field.
Many of NSU's nine seniors played a role in the victory, which completed a Spartan (21-27) sweep of the short two-game series. Hairston launched a two-run blast to center field in the bottom of the first to start the scoring. Joyce followed with a long double, and scored on sophomore third baseman Ryan Montgomery's RBI triple to stake NSU to an early 3-0 lead.
Longwood (28-18) picked up a pair of runs in the top of the fifth to get within 3-2. Scott Laabs drove in one with an RBI groundout, then Matt Dickason followed with a run-scoring single.
But the Spartans got those runs back, and one more, in the bottom of the sixth. Cameron Parsons, another member of the senior class, led off with an infield single and later scored on a Sammy Serafine double. Serafine then came home on Griffin's second hit of the day, a single up the middle that made it 5-2 in NSU's favor. Griffin then trotted home on classmate John Lynch's single to push the margin to four.
NSU tacked on two more insurance runs in the eighth as Griffin singled for the third time on the day and scored on a double by Lynch. Lynch later scored on a Mark Montgomery wild pitch.
Raymond Morton (3-3) picked up the win with 2.2 innings of scoreless relief. He relieved starter Justin Bhatti (4.1 innings, 5 hits, 1 earned run) in the fifth and got out of jams in both the fifth and sixth innings while keeping NSU in front.
Matt Gwaltney (5-6) took the loss for the Lancers, allowing 10 hits and six runs, five earned, in 5.1 innings of work.
Griffin finished the day 3-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI. Joyce went 3-for-5, while Lynch was 2-for-5 with two RBI. Ryan Montgomery also had two hits, a double and a triple.
Scott Burkett had three hits and Justin Lacy two for Longwood.
The Spartans travel to Daytona Beach, Fla., next week for the 2011 MEAC Baseball Tournament. NSU, the No. 4 seed, opens play against No. 3 North Carolina A&T at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.
