NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State softball team will embark on a road trip to Washington, D.C. this weekend to take on Howard for a three-game MEAC series beginning on Saturday. The two teams will play a doubleheader then at 1 p.m. and a single game at noon on Sunday at Nationals Youth Academy.
Live stats for all three games will be available.
The Spartans own a 6-3 record in MEAC play this year, good for second currently in the Northern Division behind leader Delaware State and a half game ahead of third-place Morgan State. NSU also owns a 12-18 overall record after splitting a doubleheader with North Carolina Central on Wednesday.
Howard, meanwhile, has lost seven in a row to fall to 5-25 overall and 1-5 in conference play.
The series will mark the first contests of a nine-game road stretch for the Spartans. It will include three different doubleheaders away from home before NSU closes the season with four games against Hampton and Morgan State at the NSU Softball Field.
MEAC Standings
The Hornets lead the Northern Division at 10-2, with NSU (6-3) and Morgan State (5-3) holding down the next two spots. Hampton, at 4-5, currently sits fourth in the standings with Howard seventh out of the seven teams at 1-5.
Florida A&M owns a 9-0 record in the South but has yet to play Savannah State (6-0) and Bethune-Cookman (6-3), the number two and three teams, respectively, in the division.
MEAC Rankings
Sophomore
Megan Przeslawski ranks fourth in the MEAC in ERA at 3.84.
Megan Dunning also ranks fourth in doubles (9) and
Seana Moriarty stands fourth in walks (17).
Whitney Williams (home runs with five) and
Kayla McNair (on-base percentage at .480) both rank fifth in their respective categories.
McNair also leads the MEAC with 12 hit-by-pitches, and Moriarty sits second with seven sacrifice bunts.
Two Home Runs Away
Williams launched her fifth home run of the season on Wednesday against North Carolina Central, giving her 20 for her career. She is now two away from tying Ursel Bruton and Lekita Wilson for the most ever in NSU history.
In addition, McNair has now been hit by a pitch 24 times in her career, just three from tying the school record of 27 set by Rebecca Barnes.
Series History
The Spartans own a 19-11 lead in the all-time series with Howard, with NSU having won the last 10 meetings dating back to 2012.
About Howard
The Bison defeated Hampton to start MEAC play this year but have lost their last seven games. They earned their other three wins in doubleheader splits with Lafayette, North Carolina Central, UMBC and Virginia State. Two players are far and away their best hitters, with Al'Asia Davis at .403 with 12 runs and 10 doubles. Jasmine Gammons is currently hitting .398 with 13 runs, six home runs and 23 RBI.
Imani Ballard ranks third on the team with a .281 average and is one of four players with between 10 and 11 RBI. Janessa Flynn has been the team's best pitcher, tallying a 4-11 record with a 4.82 ERA in 74.0 innings of work. Alex Flynn has started 10 games but carries a 7.47 ERA in 59.0 innings. Three other pitchers have combined to throw 47.0 innings but have a collective ERA over 9.00.
Up Next
NSU will play a pair of doubleheaders next week on the road, beginning on Tuesday at Longwood followed by a pair of MEAC games at UMES on Thursday. The Spartans will have next weekend off.
