Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 NORFOLK, Va. – Freshmen Haley Ward and Alina Moriarty each hit solo home runs to give the Norfolk State softball team a 2-1 win over Coppin State Saturday afternoon in the first game of a doubleheader at the NSU Softball Field. The Spartans held a 1-0 lead through one and a half innings in Game 2 before rain postponed the contest.

The two teams will attempt to finish the contest Sunday at 9:30 a.m. before playing the regularly scheduled third game of the series afterwards.

Both freshmen hit their first collegiate home runs off Coppin State starter Paige Arnold in a game that featured just nine hits combined between the two teams. NSU won its MEAC opener and moved to 10-13 overall on the season, while the Eagles fell to 7-14, 0-1 in conference play.

Another freshman, starter Liz Riley, pitched a solid seven innings for the Spartans. She gave up four hits and just one earned run with three walks and two strikeouts. Arnold gave up five hits, including both home runs, with eight strikeouts in six innings of work.

Coppin State jumped out on top in the first inning thanks to a double to left off the bat of Samantha Denlinger to score Heather Josker, who had singled with one out. Riley, though, struck out Candice Van Horn looking and got Tiffani Whaley to foul out to sophomore Melina Valles at first to strand Arnold and Denlinger at second and third, respectively, to end the threat.

Ward's leadoff home run to left center in the bottom of the first immediately tied it up at 1-1. After NSU failed to plate a run in the fourth with runners on second and third and two outs, Moriarty gave the Spartans the lead for good with a one-out, solo homer to left field in the fifth.

Riley made it stand, although not without some drama in the top of the seventh. After issuing a leadoff single to Whaley to start the frame, third baseman Whitney Holland threw a sacrifice bunt attempt by Taylor Kairos past first and down the right field line, allowing both runners to move into scoring position still with no outs.

Riley, though, calmly worked out of the jam despite the rains coming down, first getting Kira Gleason to pop up to third for the first out. Patrice Williams then popped one up into foul territory behind the first base bag, and Valles made the catch and threw a perfect strike to catcher Kathy Cortez at home to get Whaley trying to score from third.

Following a short delay when the team put the tarp on the field in between games, NSU got on the board first in the second contest with a run in the first inning. The Spartans threatened to add even more before Arnold got out of the inning.

Ward got hit on the helmet by the pitch, and Moriarty beat out a bunt single to put the first two runners on. One out later, Holland lined one over the third baseman's head down the line to score Ward from second. Valles walked with two outs to load the bases, but Arnold got sophomore Nikki Jones to pop up behind the first base bag without any more damage done.

The rain began to come down at a heavier rate in the second inning of the nightcap, forcing the tarp back on the field. After a 10-15 minute delay, umpires called the game until Sunday morning.