Spartan Softball This Week

Wednesday, April 26	NSU at Coppin State	5 p.m.	Live Stats
Thursday, April 27	NSU at Coppin State (DH)	Noon	Live Stats
Saturday, April 29	NSU at Hampton (DH)	1 p.m.	Live Stats
Sunday, April 30	NSU at Hampton	Noon	Live Stats

NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State softball program faces its final stretch in conference play this week when the Spartans play six games in five days, all on the road. Up first, NSU travels to Coppin State for a mid-week three-game series that was postponed from March.

NSU and CSU will play one game on Wednesday at 5 p.m. at the CSU Softball Field. They will finish out the series with a doubleheader on Thursday at noon. Then on Saturday, the Spartans head across the water to take on Hampton for the start of a three-game series. The two squads will play a pair at 1 p.m. on Saturday and a single contest at noon on Sunday at Lady Pirates Stadium.

Live stats will be available for all six games through Coppin State's website and Hampton's website.

Norfolk State is fighting for a playoff spot in the MEAC tournament that begins on May 11 in Ormond Beach, Fla. The top four teams from the MEAC Northern and Southern divisions advance to the tournament. NSU can finish no better than fourth in the North.
 
Morgan State and Hampton (11-1 each) and Delaware State (13-5) have their tournament spots secured. NSU currently sits in fourth at 4-8, while Maryland Eastern Shore (4-11) and Coppin State (3-9) could surpass the Spartans with a strong closing stretch of the season. MDES plays at Howard (2-13) this weekend, while Coppin State will host Morgan State this weekend after its contests against NSU.
 
Maryland Eastern Shore owns the tiebreaker with NSU after the Hawks took two of three in the series earlier this month. Norfolk State would have to finish with more MEAC wins than MDES to stay ahead in the standings.
 
Hampton also travels to Morgan State the following weekend, although that series will only decide seeding as those two teams along with Delaware State will finish 1-2-3 in some order.
 
The Spartans (11-19 overall) have not competed since April 15 after having last weekend off.
 
MEAC South Update
Florida A&M (11-1) and Bethune-Cookman (10-2) have separated themselves from the pack in the South. North Carolina A&T (6-6) and North Carolina Central (5-6) have almost all but locked up the last two spots for the conference tournament. South Carolina State and Savannah State are currently sitting fifth and sixth, respectively.
 
MEAC Rankings
NSU continues to rank second in the league in fielding percentage at .957, just ahead of the Spartan program record of .956 set in 2012. The Spartans also rank fifth in the 13-team MEAC in both batting average (.254) and ERA (4.36). On offense, NSU sits second in on-base percentage (.342) and third in home runs (19).
 
Senior Devon Bitler sits second in the MEAC in on-base percentage (.455) and third in hitting (.379). Seana Moriarty leads the league with 11 sacrifice hits, and Shelby DesChamps is seventh with 16 walks.
 
Hunter Halford ranks fourth in slugging (.541) and is also fifth in wins (7), sixth in ERA (3.68) and 11^th in strikeouts (55).
 
National Rankings
Moriarty leads the nation in sacrifice hits per game at 0.37. Halford also shares the top spot in the nation with 10 other players, having hit just one batter on the season. She is also 59^th in fewest walks allowed per seven innings (1.36), and DesChamps sits 97^th in walks per game at 0.57.
 
In active career records, McNair ranks 42^nd among Division I players with 32 career hit-by-pitches.
 
Series History
NSU owns a 47-10 all-time record against Coppin State, while the Spartans trail Hampton in that series, 66-50-1. The Spartans have won 14 in a won over CSU, having swept the season series each of the last four years while also knocking the Eagles out of the MEAC tournament in 2012 and '13.
 
NSU has taken two of three from Hampton each of the last two years. Prior to that, the Pirates had won a combined five of six games during the regular season meetings in 2013 and '14.
 
Opponent Scouting
The Eagles own a 6-38 overall record this year, with pitching serving as the team's downfall this year. CSU has a collective 9.81 team ERA. Shelby Spaziani has a 7.09 ERA in 47.0 innings, mostly in relief. Madison Didion has started 26 times and owns all six wins in the circle. She carries an 8.32 ERA in 133.0 innings with 95 strikeouts.
 
Cayla Brown owns a .384 batting average with 10 doubles, three home runs and 31 RBI. Megan Narvaez has collected 26 runs, eight doubles and 18 RBI with a .290 average, while Chloe' Ochoa is hitting .305 with 17 runs scored.
 
Hampton, meanwhile, stands 16-20 overall. Allyson Babinsack has pitched 153.1 innings while posting a 10-13 record with a 2.78 ERA. Allie Hotetz has a 6-7 record in 78.2 innings with a 4.36 ERA.
 
On offense, several newcomers lead the way. Taylor Warrick is hitting a team-best .368 with 23 runs, 10 extra-base hits, 15 RBI and 22 stolen bases. Quierra Bradford (.305, 17 runs, 12 RBI) and Brianna Anderson (.302, 13 runs, 14 RBI, 14 stolen bases) have also contributed, and each has eight extra-base hits on the season. Three other regular starters are hitting at least .270 for a Pirate team that bats .266.
 
Up Next
Following the action at Hampton, NSU plays two more regular season games. The Spartans host North Carolina A&T for a doubleheader on May 7 beginning at 2 p.m.