Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Norfolk State softball team dropped a 6-4 contest to Rider before securing its first win of the season with an 11-6 victory over Drexel on Saturday during the first day of the Blue & Gold Tournament hosted by North Carolina A&T at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex.
 
Rider scored six runs in the fifth inning in an early afternoon matchup to erase what was a four-run NSU lead. The Spartans bounced back to win their first game of the year over Drexel in five innings thanks to its best offensive showing so far in 2015.
 
Senior right fielder Alina Moriarty finished 4-for-6 with three runs and two RBI on the day and was one of four players with two hits in the second contest of the day for NSU (1-9).
 
Freshman third baseman Megan Przeslawski hit 2-for-3 with two runs and three RBI against Drexel (5-6). The top four spots in the lineup combined to go 8-for-13 with nine runs scored.
 
It certainly did not take NSU any time to get going. In the bottom of the first, singles by junior center fielder Heather Dunning, sophomore left fielder Devon Bitler and Moriarty loaded the bases with no outs. Przeslawski followed with a two-run single to center, and one out later with the bases again loaded, senior Liz Riley hit an RBI groundout for a 3-0 lead.
 
Freshman second baseman Seana Moriarty hit a two-run double to left field to give the Spartans a 5-0 edge after the first inning.
 
Two RBI hits and a sacrifice bunt in the top of the second got three of those runs back for the Dragons, but the Spartans scored two more in the bottom half of the frame. A single, error and a walk, all with two outs, loaded the bases. Senior catcher Sommer Di Fulgo singled to bring one run home, and freshman pitcher Marissa Marrero drew a walk to plate another run.
 
Then in the third, NSU loaded the bases once again on a single, error and a walk in that order. Przeslawski hit an RBI single to left and junior Whitney Williams lofted a sac fly to center. Another error on Drexel made it 10-4 after just three innings.
 
Seana Moriarty scored on a passed ball in the fourth, and the Dragons scored two runs in the top of the fifth for the final margin of victory.
 
Dunning and Bitler went 4-for-7 with four runs scored at the top two spots in the lineup. Marrero (1-6) picked up the win in relief.
 
Four players had two hits each for Drexel, which had 14 hits as a team.
 
In the first game of the day, Rider's six-run fifth inning erased an early Spartan lead. NSU had scored in the top of the first when Bitler singled into left field and Alina Moriarty followed with an RBI double. Dunning made it 2-0 with an RBI groundout in the second, and the Spartans plated two more in the third.
 
Alina Moriarty led off the inning with a home run to left field. One out later, Williams, playing in her first game of the season, belted a solo shot to left for a 4-0 NSU lead.
 
But in the fifth, the Broncs (3-3) finally broke through in a big way. With one out and a runner on base, a double, triple and single all in a row scored three runs. After an NSU pitching change and the second out of the inning was recorded, Amanda Crimarco's single tied it up. Gina McCool smacked a two-run double to center to score the eventual winning runs.
 
The Spartans had a chance to tie it up with two runners on and one out in the seventh, but Bronc starter Kaitlyn Kallert (2-1) recorded the last two outs to finish the win.
 
Alina Moriarty hit 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI, while Williams finished 2-for-3 against Rider.
 
NSU will play Rider and North Carolina A&T on Sunday during the second day of the tournament.