Upcoming Schedule
Friday: Howard at NSU (DH), 1 p.m., NSU Softball Field
Saturday: Howard at NSU, Noon, NSU Softball Field
Live Stats | Live Video
NORFOLK, Va. – A week after tallying 35 runs and 42 hits in a three-game sweep of Coppin State, the Norfolk State softball team will attempt to keep the bats rolling this Friday and Saturday during a three-game series with Howard at the NSU Softball Field.
The two teams will play a doubleheader Friday at 1 p.m. followed by a single game at noon on Saturday. The games were moved up a day because of the Easter holiday on Sunday. NSU will play eight straight at home beginning with Friday's twinbill.
Live stats and a live video feed will be available for the games. Friday's doubleheader will also include play-by-play commentary with it as well.
The Bison own a 2-17 record and are 1-2 in MEAC play after UMES took two of three last weekend. The Hawks won 15-0 and 8-1 after Howard took the first game, 4-3. The Bison's only other win this year was against Division II Winston-Salem State, 2-1.
NSU, meanwhile, owns a 10-15 record on the year and a 3-0 MEAC mark after taking care of Coppin State on the road.
More on the Spartans
NSU raised its team batting average to .324 on the year, and sophomore Haley Ward upped her average to .521 after going 10-for-11 last weekend. She has totaled six doubles, four triples, one home run and 17 RBI in 14 games. Senior Gipsy Ramirez is hitting a robust .406 with six doubles, a homer and a team-leading 21 RBI.
Sophomore Alina Moriarty carries a .325 average with 21 runs, eight doubles, one triple, three home runs and 18 RBI. Junior Morgan Boyd has scored a team-leading 25 runs with 16 stolen bases and a .317 average. NSU also gets production out of junior Kathy Cortez (.313, four doubles, 14 RBI), freshman Whitney Williams (.333, three doubles, 10 RBI) and freshman Heather Dunning (.329, 17 runs, 11 RBI, eight stolen bases).
In the circle, junior Jamie Schulle owns a 7-8 record with 60 strikeouts in 77.1 innings and a 4.44 ERA. Sophomore Liz Riley has pitched 71.0 innings and has a 4.93 ERA.
Chasing a Mark
Haley Ward has a hit in 10 straight at bats leading into the games against Howard. The NCAA Division I record stands at 13 by April Setterlund of Boston University in 2010.
In her last eight games Ward is hitting .724 (21-for-29). As a team, NSU has a .404 average (108-for-267) over the last nine games.
Nationally Ranked
NSU's .324 team average ranks 19th in the nation out of 290 teams. The Spartans also sit in the top 50 in doubles per game (28th, 1.56), scoring (34th, 5.92 runs) and triples per game (45th, 0.24).
Morgan Boyd stands 27th in the nation in stolen bases per game at 0.64. After last weekend, a whole host of NSU players jumped into the top-150 national rankings. Boyd also sits 45th in runs per game (1.0). Moriarty (54th, 0.32 doubles per game) and Gipsy Ramirez (73rd, 1.0 RBI per game) also are highly ranked.
Haley Ward has not played in enough games to qualify for batting average. If she did, her .521 mark would stand second in the nation, and she would be one of just three players to be hitting above. 500.
More Record Watching
Gipsy Ramirez needs three more hits to crack the top 10 all-time at NSU. Jamie Schulle is now eight strikeouts away from tying third place in the Spartan record book.
Ward Named MEAC Player of the Week
Haley Ward was named the MEAC Player of the Week in a non-so-surprising result after going 10-for-11, including six extra-base hits, with seven runs and 12 RBI against Coppin State.
Up Next
NSU will host Longwood next Thursday for a doubleheader at 5 p.m.
