Upcoming Schedule
Friday: NSU at Delaware State (DH), 1 p.m., Hornets Nest field
Saturday: NSU at Delaware State, 1 p.m., Hornets Nest field
Live Stats | Live Video
NORFOLK, Va. – The Delaware State and Norfolk State softball teams will begin a key conference series a day earlier than scheduled with first place in the MEAC Northern Division on the line. The two teams will now play a doubleheader on Friday at 1 p.m. at Delaware State's Hornets Nest field and a single game on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The games were originally scheduled for the usual Saturday-Sunday MEAC weekend but were moved up due to the threat of inclement weather on Sunday. Live stats and a live video feed will be available for all three games at Delaware State.
Delaware State, at 8-1, sits atop the Northern Division after taking two of three from Coppin State last weekend. NSU swept Morgan State last weekend at home to move into second place ahead of Coppin State at 7-2. Following these upcoming games, both NSU and DSU will play Howard next week, while the Hornets finish out the year with UMES and the Spartans (18-19) end the regular season at home against Hampton.
Delaware State owns an 18-12-1 overall record this year, while the Spartans sit 18-19 on the season. The Hornets have the slight edge in the all-time series, 16-15, after the two teams split a pair of games last year in Norfolk.
Scouting the Spartans
A solid weekend at the plate for the Spartans raised their team average up to .279 on the season, highlighted by freshman Haley Ward's .422 clip. Ward has scored 26 runs with nine doubles, a triple, two home runs and 16 RBI on the year. Freshman Alina Moriarty ranks second on the team with a .343 average to go along with 12 runs, two homers and 15 RBI.
Sophomore Morgan Boyd bumped her average up to .326 after going 11-for-19 over the last five games with 21 runs and 18 stolen bases, while senior Danielle Wright (.309, 23 runs, seven doubles, one home run, 15 RBI 10 stolen bases) and junior Gipsy Ramirez (.308, 12 runs, 15 RBI) are also hitting above .300. Senior Whitney Holland sits at .292 on the season with 13 runs, five doubles and team-leading totals of four homers and 17 RBI.
Sophomore Jamie Schulle owns a 9-9 record in the circle with 108 strikeouts in 138 innings pitched and a 3.25 ERA. Freshman Liz Riley has tallied a 9-10 record with a 2.81 ERA, fanning 48 in 104.2 innings of work.
Upping the Average
Haley Ward bumped her average up to .422 on the season after extending her hit streak to 15 against Morgan State. Ward ranks first in the MEAC in average and is just one of two players hitting above .400 on the year. She also ranks 33rd in the nation in average and is fourth among freshmen on the national scale.
More National Rankings
In addition to Ward's ranking, sophomore Kathy Cortez stands third in the nation in toughest to strikeout, fanning once every 52 at bats, after finishing seventh last year in the category. In addition, Whitney Holland ranks 38th with a strikeout every 21.2 at bats, and Morgan Boyd is also 38th with 0.51 stolen bases per game.
MEAC Rankings
In addition to Ward, sophomore Melina Valles ranks second in the MEAC in walks with 17 and Boyd ranks second with 18 stolen bases. Starting pitcher Jamie Schulle stands third with 108 strikeouts, and Liz Riley is fifth with a 2.81 ERA.
Record Chasing
Jamie Schulle needs just two more strikeouts to tie the school's Division I single-season record of 110 set by Alyssa Velazquez and 11 more K's to move into a tie for fourth on the all-time list.
Danielle Wright stands third all-time in hits with 161 and is 18 away from the program record of 179 held by Brianeisha Eure. Haley Ward's 15-game hit streak is the longest since Jewel White had a 17-game streak in 2007.
About Delaware State
The Hornets by last year's MEAC Player of the Year, outfielder Jordan Reid, who owns a .391 average with 29 runs, five doubles, four triples, two home runs and 10 RBI. Stephanie Martello is hitting .318 with 15 runs, two homers and 16 RBI, while Bria Green (.313, 10 runs, four doubles, nine RBI) and Casey Beighley (.302, 10 runs, five doubles, three triples, 18 RBI) also provide plenty of production.
Beighley and Stephanie Sarris also form a strong 1-2 punch for the Hornets in the circle. Sarris owns a 7-3 record with a 1.98 ERA, while Beighley stands 5-4 on the year with a 2.84 ERA. The duo has combined for 17 starts. Rachel Meagley has started six games and owns a 4-0 record and 1.19 ERA in 29.1 innings pitched, while three other players have also gotten starts on the year.
Up Next
NSU will play a mid-week conference series against Howard beginning Wednesday with a doubleheader at 3 p.m. at the NSU Softball Field. The two teams will also play Thursday at 1 p.m. The two teams were scheduled to play at Howard March 31-April 1, but compliance issues forced Howard to originally cancel the contests.
