Box Score NORFOLK, Va. – Freshman Kayla McNair hit a three-run home run and two Spartan pitchers scattered nine hits as the Norfolk State softball team completed a three-game sweep of Morgan State with an 8-1 win on Sunday afternoon at the NSU Softball Field.

Senior Jamie Schulle struck out six in five innings of work, giving up just one unearned run before giving way to reliever Stephanie Wheatley. The victory improved NSU's first-place record in the MEAC Northern Division to 11-1 and its overall record to 17-16.

McNair drove in three runs and senior Morgan Boyd drove in two against Morgan State starter Jordan Eades (1-11). She allowed nine hits and eight runs, just three earned, but also struck out eight Spartan batters. The Bears fell to 3-17 overall and 0-8 in conference play.

MSU struck first with an unearned run in the top of the first inning for the early lead. The Spartans answered with three runs in the second to take the lead back.

Sophomore Whitney Williams hit a soft single to center field, and two outs later went to third on a base hit by junior Alina Moriarty. With the outfield playing in and shifted to left, Boyd still put one over the left fielder's head for a two-run double. She then scored when sophomore Heather Dunning hit a bunt single down the first base line and MSU let the ball scoot away on the throw to first.

NSU had a great defensive sequence to preserve the lead in the fourth. With a runner on first and one out, Kate Vosper doubled into the left field corner, but freshman Devon Bitler fired a bullet to home on the relay throw to get the lead runner. Vosper went to third on the throw but got picked off during the next at bat when she strayed too far from the bag.

Schulle (12-7) worked out of another jam in the fifth, getting one of MSU's best hitters, Zina Constancia, looking on a backdoor curve for strike three with the bases loaded.

Junior Liz Riley hit an RBI single into left field in the fifth for a 4-1 lead, and NSU plated four more runs in the sixth. Dunning reached on an error with two outs and senior Nikki Jones walked before McNair deposited a 1-0 pitch over the left-center field fence for her team-leading seventh homer of the game.

Bitler followed with a double to the left-center field gap and scored on a sharp single to center off the bat of Williams.

Wheatley earned her first save of the year after pitching two scoreless innings.

First place will be on the line when NSU plays a key MEAC series at Delaware State beginning next Friday with a doubleheader at 1 p.m.