SAVANNAH, Ga. – The Norfolk State softball team bounced back from the opening day of its season to defeat both South Carolina State and Savannah State on Saturday during day 2 of the Tiger Classic.
 
Senior Jaylene Pryor and junior Kylee Lopez led the Spartans in their 6-2 win over S.C. State to start the day, giving James Inzana his first win as NSU head coach. In a late afternoon contest, host Savannah State mounted a comeback in the latter stages of the game. Pryor, though, delivered the go-ahead double in the seventh for a 10-9 victory. 
 
Pryor and Lopez each had big days to pace the Spartans on offense. They combined to go 5-for-8 with all five of the team's RBI in the win over the Bulldogs. Lopez later hit a two-run homer and drove in four runs in the victory over the Tigers. Pryor also had a pair of hits in the second game of the day for NSU (2-2), including the game-winning one.
 
The Spartans had 13 hits altogether in the victory against Savannah State (3-1). They jumped out to an early lead, as a single and a walk got things started in the top of the first for NSU. One out later, junior Hunter Halford singled in a run, and then with two outs, Lopez lined a two-run double for a 3-0 lead.
 
Freshman Jazzmaine Hammond immediately followed with a two-run blast to left field for a five-run lead.
 
The Tigers got on the board with an RBI single in the second. They added three more runs in the fourth on an RBI double from Amanda Hallman and a two-run single off the bat of Shayna Byers to make it a 5-4 game.
 
But in the fifth, junior Shelby DesChamps led off the inning with a single before senior Seana Moriarty brought her home on a two-run homer to left. Later in the inning, Halford doubled with two outs before Lopez hit a two-run blast of her own to center, her second homer of the day, to stretch the lead to 9-4.
 
But the Tigers came roaring back. Cortni Jones hit a solo home run as part of a two-run fifth for SSU, and Shelby Eccles' two-run single finished a three-run sixth inning that tied the game at 9-9.
 
NSU had the answer in the top of the seventh. Halford singled with two outs, and pinch runner Cher Jamison scored on Pryor's double to right.
 
Lopez hit 2-for-4 with two runs and four RBI, while Moriarty batted 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBI as well. DesChamps finished 3-for-4 with two runs, while Halford (3-for-4, two runs) and Hammond (1-for-3, two RBI) also played big roles in the win over Savannah State.
 
Jones (2-1) had four hits in four at bats for the Tigers while scoring three runs. Like NSU, Savannah State also had 13 hits in the game. Hallman took the loss after allowing the game-winning run in the seventh. Junior Shannon Buffington (1-0) pitched the final two innings of the game to earn the win for the Spartans.
 
Against South Carolina State (0-2), the Spartans again took the first lead of the game. An error in the first inning gave them an early one-run advantage, but the Bulldogs got a two-run single from Jada Lake in the bottom of the frame for their only lead of the game. Pryor's RBI double in the third tied it up before NSU surged ahead in the fifth.
 
Halford walked with two outs before Lopez doubled her home. Pryor then homered to center for a 5-2 advantage. Lopez added a solo home run in the top of the seventh for the final margin.
 
Lopez finished 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI, and Pryor batted 2-for-4 with three RBI against the Bulldogs.
 
Halford (2-0) pitched 6.2 innings and allowed two earned runs on seven hits. The Spartans tagged Lake (0-1) for nine hits and six earned runs in all seven innings.
 
Lopez finished with six RBI on the day, while Pryor had four while hitting 5-for-8.
 
NSU will play South Carolina State twice on Sunday beginning at 10 a.m. to close out the tournament.